Mountbatten receives £1,584 grant from Freemasons

(left to right) Nigel Hartley, CEO Mountbatten, David Foot, Assistant Provincial Grand Master for Hampshire and Isle of Wight Freemasons, Liz Arnold, Director of Nursing at Mountbatten, Tony Latter, Communication Officer for Hampshire and Isle of Wight Freemasons

Mountbatten has been chosen to receive a grant of £1,584 from the Provincial Grand Lodge of Hampshire and Isle of Wight Freemasons.

The grant comes through the Masonic Charitable Foundation (MCF), and will be used to support more Island families who are facing death, dying and bereavement.

This is just one of 237 grants to hospices around the country from Freemasons. In total £600,000 will be donated to hospices all over England and Wales this year.

This includes £300,000 which will be distributed to each hospice that receives less than 60 per cent funding from the NHS. A further £300,000 will be provided to individual hospices across England and Wales via Hospice UK, the national charity for hospice care. MCF is partnering with Hospice UK to develop and extend bereavement support services in hospices.

Contributions from Freemasons to hospices have exceeded £13 million in England and Wales since 1984 and are continuing to increase at a rate of £600,000 a year.

Nigel Hartley, Mountbatten CEO, said: “We’re very grateful to the Provincial Grand Lodge of Hampshire and Isle of Wight Freemasons for their generous grant, which will enable us to continue caring for Islanders who are reaching the end of their lives, as well as providing bereavement support for those who have experienced the death of a friend or relative. It’s a distressing fact that one in three Islanders don’t currently access our care or support, and ongoing support from organisations such as the Freemasons will ensure we can continue to reach out to those who need us at the most challenging of times.”

David Foot, Assistant Provincial Grand Master for Hampshire and Isle of Wight Freemasons said: “I’m very pleased we’ve been able to assist Mountbatten. They do an outstanding job helping people with terminal or life limiting conditions, as well as supporting their families through very difficult times.”