Local charity raises concern over stark NHS funding disparity for end-of-life care in Oxfordshire
A long-established Oxfordshire charity providing vital palliative and end-of-life care in people’s homes has raised serious concerns about inequality in NHS funding across the county, following a recent BBC report highlighting a national end-of-life care crisis.
Lawrence Nurses, a community-based hospice-at-home service supporting patients and families across North and West Oxfordshire, currently receives less than £21,000 per year in NHS funding to deliver free, dedicated palliative and end-of-life care. This compares sharply with the recent award of a major NHS contract to national charity Sue Ryder to expand services across South Oxfordshire and neighbouring areas.
The issue comes amid growing pressure on hospitals, highlighted in a BBC News report on 29 December 2025, which warned that inadequate end-of-life care is contributing to rising hospital admissions and placing further strain on the NHS.
Despite delivering hands-on nursing care, symptom management, respite and emotional support in communities including Bloxham, Chipping Norton, Charlbury, Deddington and surrounding villages, Lawrence Nurses says it has been unable to secure even a face-to-face meeting with the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West Integrated Care Board (BOB ICB) over the past year to discuss the sustainability of its funding.
Sean Woodcock MP has now written formally to the ICB expressing concern about what he describes as an apparent imbalance in commissioning and engagement with local providers.
“At a time when the BBC and others are warning of an end-of-life care crisis that is directly affecting hospital capacity, it is deeply concerning that a small, highly effective local service is struggling to secure basic statutory support,” he said.
“Lawrence Nurses plays a vital role in helping people to die with dignity at home while reducing pressure on emergency services and hospital beds. While different providers operate at different scales, local services must be given a fair opportunity to be heard and supported.”
Lawrence Nurses stresses that it is not opposing funding for other charities, but is calling for equity, transparency and meaningful engagement in how NHS end-of-life care is commissioned across Oxfordshire.
The charity is urging BOB ICB to meet urgently to review its role, impact and the sustainability of local hospice-at-home services, warning that continued underfunding risks widening inequalities in access to end-of-life care depending on where patients live.
