St Catherine’s Hospice officially get keys for new £19.5 million state-of-the-art building - watch the ceremony here

After 90 weeks, the completion of the state-of-the-art hospice saw Barnes Construction handing a ceremonial key to St Catherine’s to symbolise the end of the build and the start of a new

home for the much-loved charity, that provides palliative and end of life care throughout West Sussex and East Surrey.

Designed by Building Ideas and LSI Architects, and built by Barnes Construction, the new hospice is 41,000 sq ft - one and a half times the size of St Catherine’s current site on Malthouse Road in Crawley.

The impressive facility provides St Catherine’s with 24 patient rooms, each with their own garden and en-suite facilities, and space for relatives to stay overnight with their loved ones.

It also has improved facilities for people being cared for in the community, with a wellbeing centre, a gym, counselling rooms, a reflective space and areas for music and art therapies.

It even includes a hair and beauty salon for patients and members of the local community to use.

Mark Hart, Joint Managing Director of Barnes Construction said, “It has been an absolute privilege and honour for Barnes Construction to lead on the construction of this wonderful new hospice. This structure stands not just as bricks and mortar, but as a testament to everyone’s commitment to compassionate care and the well-being of those facing life’s most challenging moments. The key that we have handed over to St Catherine’s Hospice today to mark the completion, is not merely a symbol of access, but a symbol of hope; a key to a haven where skilled hands and compassionate hearts will continue to work tirelessly to enhance the quality of life for those requiring care at the end of their lives.”

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Giles Tomsett, St Catherine’s Hospice Chief Executive said, “This project has been 10 years in the making and receiving this key from Barnes Construction today marks the end of an incredible journey. As we take ownership of our impressive new home, I want to thank our local community in East Surrey and West Sussex for their unwavering support and for making this building a reality.

“For 40 years, St Catherine’s has proudly provided our outstanding care, but demand is high and we need to reach more people who need us. Our incredible new hospice will ensure that we can help more people, on our wards and out in the community, who are facing the end of their lives, both now and for generations to come.”

St Catherine’s non-clinical staff will be moving into the new hospice from Monday 27 November and clinical staff and patients will be moving in at the start of December.

To find out more about St Catherine’s Hospice or to make a donation please visit stch.org.uk

Non-clinical staff will be moving into the building from Monday, November 27 with clinical staff and patients moving in at the start of December.

You can see special feature with interviews chief executive Giles Tomsett, People and Site Services Director Elly Powis and outpatient Bill McClusker in the video above and in next week's newspaper.