Committee publication · Correspondence · 26 January 2026
Letter from the Chief Executive Officer of Sue Ryder relating to the Committee’s evidence session on 12 January 2026 on Financial Sustainability of Adult Hospices, 16 January 2026
From: Public Accounts Committee
Inquiry: Financial sustainability of adult hospices in England
Summary
James Sanderson, CEO of Sue Ryder, responds to the Public Accounts Committee's 12 January 2026 evidence session on hospice financial sustainability. He expresses concern about the September 2026 delivery timeline for the Modern Service Framework amid rising demand and financial pressures, argues for viewing in-patient and community care as complementary rather than competing, and highlights Sue Ryder's seven-year multi-year contract with Thames Valley ICB as a model that provides planning certainty while shifting focus from beds to population-based modern services.
Key findings
- MSF delivery expected September 2026 is too slow given rapidly rising demand for palliative and end-of-life care and significant financial pressures facing hospices; interim action needed immediately.
- In-patient unit bed closures questioned by Committee; only 19% of hospices' total activity delivered in IPUs in 2024–25, while 80% of Sue Ryder care is community-based, indicating shifting patient preference for home-based care.
- Only 35% of ICBs significantly or fully understand their palliative and end-of-life care population health needs (per Marie Curie research), risking failure to meet statutory duty under Health and Care Act 2022 to commission services meeting local needs.
- Engagement of hospices in developing neighbourhood health services has been 'patchy and in some areas, non-existent' despite sector's extensive community-care experience.
- Sue Ryder's seven-year multi-year contract with Thames Valley ICB (BOB) demonstrates viable model: focused on modern services meeting ageing population needs rather than building/beds, providing planning certainty and confidence to innovate.
Tone
CriticalTopics
Key actors
James Sanderson, Sue Ryder, Public Accounts Committee, Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown MP, Integrated Care Boards, Marie Curie, Thames Valley ICB, National Health Service
Notable line
“Without this understanding, there is a considerable risk that ICBs will be unable to plan effectively or set out how they will meet projected demand from April …”
Key Quotes
“Against a backdrop of rapidly rising demand for palliative and end-of-life care (PEoLC) and significant financial pressures facing adult hospices, this timetable is a cause for concern.”
“More widely, 19% of hospices' total activity was delivered in an IPU in 2024-25. This highlights the importance of viewing in-patient and community-based provision as complementary …”
“Research by Marie Curie found that only 35% of ICBs reported that they significantly or fully understand PEoLC population health needs.”
“The contract isn't focused on a hospice building and beds, but on the type of modern service needed to meet the needs of an ageing population.”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗