Grace’s Place is our First Choice

FIRST Choice Homes Oldham has chosen to help secure the future of a children’s hospice it picked as its charity of the year for 2015/16.

Staff members voted to support Grace’s Place in Bury, a sanctuary dedicated to providing palliative and end-of-life care for children across Greater Manchester, including Oldham.

The hospice, which aims to open in 2016, was inspired by three-year-old Grace Tinarwo, from Rochdale, who suffers from the chromosomal abnormality Patau Syndrome, which means she requires help to communicate and feed herself.

Any specialist care or support her family needs involves a journey to South Manchester, which inspired Bury Hospice and Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust to create a dedicated children’s hospice in North Manchester.

An initial £500,000 grant was awarded but a further £1million is needed to secure completion.

FCHO chief executive Cath Green said: “I’m thrilled that colleagues have chosen to support Grace’s Place which will help so many local families.”

The hospice will care for children with cancers, neurological illnesses and physical disabilities and will be only the 50th children’s hospice in the country.

In the past two years, FCHO has supported Dr Kershaw’s Hospice and DS West Pennine, a parent-led Down’s Syndrome support group.