Whether or not assisted dying is introduced in the UK, everyone should be able to access high quality palliative and end of life care, no matter who they are, where they are or why they are ill.

Nobody should ever feel they have to make the choice to have an assisted death because of a real or imagined fear of not receiving the care and support they need.

We firmly believe that whatever decisions are made around assisted dying, there needs to be fair funding and equitable provision of palliative and end of life care across the UK. But for a number of reasons, notably a failure to fairly fund hospice care in line with population need, this is not currently the case*

Wakefield Hospice provides specialist end-of-life and palliative care for patients living in the Wakefield district and support for their families.

The national discussion around assisted dying brings forward a wide variety of views and opinions, and we recognise this can be a sensitive and emotional issue for many.

As a hospice, it is not our role to hold anything other than a neutral position on any prospective changes to this law. Our focus will continue to be on our charitable objective of “providing the highest quality care and support to patients with a life-limiting condition, and their families, championing quality care across the Wakefield district.”

We will continue to remain impartial and respectful of all opinions regarding assisted dying, and anyone accessing our care services (or looking to access our care services) will continue to be supported with the utmost dignity, respect and high-quality of care regardless of their viewpoint.

We will continue to actively engage in any opportunities on a regional or national level to further understand the implications around any potential changes to the law on the hospice sector.


*Statement from Hospice UK (November 2024), the national champion for hospices across the UK, with whom we are in unison with their stance on this topic