A MULTI-million pound scheme to expand St Richard's Hospice base in the city has been given the go-ahead by councillors.

The charity had submitted expansion plans for the hospice site at Wildwood Drive to help them meet the ever-increasing need for hospice care in Worcestershire.

The £5.3 million extension and redevelopment proposals were approved when they went before Worcester City councillors on August 25.

The move to expand follows a strategic study to determine the future of St Richard’s Hospice care for the next decade.

The hospice currently supports more than 3,000 patients with life-limiting illnesses, and their loved ones.

The scheme includes plans to:

• Reconfigure the reception area.

• Extend the building for larger rooms suitable for exercise based groups, such as Tai Chi and yoga.

• Create a specialist exercise studio and occupational therapy kitchen.

• Have more rooms for counselling sessions, music, horticultural and art therapy.

• And create a spacious social and eating area.

St Richard's Hospice chief executive June Patel said: “Currently areas of our hospice building in Worcester are bursting at the seams and we are struggling to respond to the ever-increasing number of patients.

"In order to better support our current patients and reach the unmet need of thousands of local people in the future, we will have to expand and adapt our current space and services.

“We are already at full capacity and the demand is set to rise sharply with our ageing population and people living longer with multiple illnesses such as heart failure, Parkinson’s, and motor neurone disease as well as cancer.

“Our vision is for a bigger hospice where we will be able to support people from the point they are diagnosed, improving their quality of life and offering support to their loved ones.

"The bigger hospice, widespread redevelopment of the current building and a focus on more flexible, seven day a week care and support will mean we can reach more people in ways they want, helping them to learn new skills and strategies to manage their illness and increase independence as well as helping them to come to terms with the impact on their lives.

“Bigger, multi-purpose spaces will allow us to offer a wider choice of activities to help people manage their illness where appropriate, such as sessions to cope with breathlessness and fatigue, exercise-based groups and creative and music therapies which can increase confidence and independence, bring relief from symptoms, reduce stress, anxiety and depression as well as improve sleep."

The new and expanded services will run alongside St Richard’s current wide range of patient and family care including support in people’s own homes and 17 in-patient beds.

For more on the hospice visit strichards.org.uk.