Rishi pledged his support for Hospice Care Week during a visit to a facility which serves his constituency.
Rishi signed the Hospice Care Week pledge during his tour of St Teresa Hospice. The Darlington-based hospice provides services for many of his constituents with life-limiting illnesses and their families in North Yorkshire.
Rishi said: “I am very aware of how important the services provided by St Teresa’s are. They touch so many of our lives.”
During his tour, which was organised by Mary Lovell OBE, chair of the hospice’s Richmond support group, Rishi learnt about the hospice’s £1.4m ten-bed inpatient unit currently under construction in the grounds of its Woodland Road base.
He was told how a third of the hospice’s £2.2m annual budget is met by the NHS and how the remainder is covered by fundraising and donations.
He met a number of patients, many staff and some of the 400 volunteers who provide a range of vital services.
The theme for Hospice Care Week 2015 is connecting care, focusing on the special role hospices play in linking up individuals, families and communities. Mr Sunak showed his support for the week by writing a personal message.
Jane Bradshaw, St Teresa’s hospice director, said Mr Sunak’s visit and his support for Hospice Care Week had been very welcome.
She said: “Spreading awareness of the work of St Teresa’s Hospice is vital so that we can help as many people as possible, ensuring they can access our range of services. It is important to have public figures like Rishi to visit our base in Darlington and to hear about our wider reach across South Durham and North Yorkshire.”