Making memories that last forever for the families of children with short lives

When Acorns Children’s Hospice Staff Nurse Joanna Hutton sees a popcorn machine, she doesn’t just see a gadget that makes a sweet movie favourite. She thinks of popcorn throwing, children having fun, and families making memories. Now she speaks out about the importance of memory-making for families and children whose lives are short – as the charity launches its Celebrate Your Star campaign.

“Memory-making starts from the day we meet the family. It can be at the hospice, or in the home, and we will always make memories every day,” says Staff Nurse Joanna Hutton, at Acorns Children’s Hospice.

“Keepsakes mean the world to families, and they can look at those objects and remember, and picture loved ones in their mind. For years down the line it will always remind them of someone they loved and lost.”

Memories and celebrating the lives of lost loved ones is at the heart of a moving campaign at Acorns – and is offering a unique ‘glittering’ keepsake that people can dedicate to much-missed family members or friends.

Celebrate Your Star is asking supporters to make a donation towards the charity’s lifeline care for seriously ill children in return for a beautiful golden star which can be hung on festive trees or around the home to remember those who are no longer with us.

Memories and treasures like these stars, says Joanna, are an important part of the work that Acorns does when caring for children with life limiting or life threatening conditions.

“Christmas is meant to be the happiest time of the year,” she said. “But obviously, for some families, it can also be the saddest time of year. But with items like our golden stars, they’re like that little trigger to remind them of a moment, or to be able to start a story, to tell someone about that loved one or a memory about them.

“It’s why memory making here at Acorns is pivotal to our care. I know some families who have used hand-prints to turn them into Christmas cards, or keyrings, or baubles that they hang on the tree, and they come out every single year.”

She added: “It can also enable them to share those memories with their wider family and friends. I think that Christmas is a time for being with your family, and being together and remembering those who are no longer with us.”

As she talks Joanna points at a portable popcorn machine, which sits in the corner of a room in the hospice.

“So seeing that popcorn maker, just creates a kind of flashback in time, where I’ve been with kids at the end of their lives,” she said. “It reminds me of siblings throwing popcorn at each other and having a laugh, and of watching films with them here in the hospice and them singing and having fun.

“It can make me emotional thinking about it, but helping to create those memories for families that they wouldn’t be able to get at home makes our job so special and worthwhile.”

Joanna added: “Sometimes it can make me think of sad moments, but it also makes me feel like I’m doing the most amazing job here at Acorns, and gives me a warm feeling in my heart. I feel so very privileged helping to look after these families who come into our hospice and trust us in very difficult times. That’s what that object represents.”

Parents are also thrilled to receive items that have been made by their children, such as paintings, arts and crafts. Families who receive end-of-life care at Acorns are given a memory box, containing hand prints or foot prints, photographs, drawings or paintings, crafts, hand casts, fingerprints, and other items to forever remind the families of a child who has been cared for by the hospice.

Why environmental sustainability?

As the largest children’s hospice charity in the UK, Acorns delivers vital services to hundreds of children and families every year.

We operate three hospices and a growing network of shops, supported by the central functions a charity like ours needs to continue. This activity consumes resources and contributes to waste and emissions.

It’s our responsibility as a charity and duty to the community we serve, to strive towards sustainability in everything we do, and lessen our impact on the planet.

As part of the plan, Acorns has identified three key focus areas which will help us achieve our objectives over the coming years: people, purchasing and planet, which you can read about in more detail in the document.

The journey so far

To build the plan, we worked with Bioregional, a specialist sustainability consultancy. Bioregional engaged with teams across Acorns, gathering detailed information through workshops, interviews and analysing data to identify where we can make the biggest impact.

This work has helped build an accurate picture of where we are as a charity, and where we want to go.

Acorns strives for excellence, and our environmental sustainability plan will help us deliver the vital care local children and families need, and through that – shape a better world, for generations to come.

Read Shaping a Better World here.

The fight to save a vital piece of funding for children’s hospices took a major step forward today as mum Liz Bishop travelled to Westminster for a meeting with MPs.

Liz, whose daughter Lily-Mai received care at Acorns, joined the charity’s CEO Trevor Johnson to talk to MPs about how they can support Children’s Care Matters – an urgent campaign calling on the Government to safeguard the £25 million NHS England Children’s Hospice Grant.

Uncertainty around the future of the Grant, worth £2 million to Acorns every year,  means the charity, and children’s hospices nationwide are faced with difficult decisions about making cuts to the services that countless children and families need.

Liz returned to London after last month delivering a petition of over 10,000 signatures to 10 Downing Street as part of the campaign. She called on MPs to continue highlighting the funding issue in Parliament on behalf of families like hers who rely on children’s hospices.

She said: “It was fantastic to be back in Westminster again today and share my story about how Acorns provided amazing care for my daughter Lily-Mai and our whole family. The response from MPs has been really positive and it’s wonderful to know they will continue to raise this important issue in Parliament.

“To think there could be families like ours in the future who will miss out on vital care is really worrying. I hope the Government listens to our campaign and does something urgently to make sure Acorns, and every children’s hospice is protected.”

Children’s Care Matters was launched in July in response to the uncertain future of the NHS England Children’s Hospice Grant. Uncertainty around future funding comes as demand for end-of-life care provided to families like Liz’s at Acorns has grown by 47% in the past year.

Commenting on today’s meeting in Westminster, Acorns Chief Executive Trevor Johnson, said: “We are very encouraged by the response today from MPs and extremely grateful for their time and commitment to understanding the importance of this funding issue for children’s hospices.

“Every day that passes without a positive announcement from the Government our concern for the most vulnerable in our community grows. And that’s why we will continue campaigning and work together with our supporters to ensure that no child or family who need vital care is ever turned away.”

In the past year, Acorns has cared for more than 750 children across the West Midlands, and supported almost 1,000 families, including those who are bereaved.

This care and support is provided from Acorns three hospices, based in Birmingham, Walsall and Worcester, and in the community.

To find out more about the Children’s Care Matters campaign and how you can get involved, visit: www.acorns.org.uk/campaign

Walsall Council members have unanimously backed our Children’s Care Matters campaign to save the Children’s Hospice Grant.

Funding for the Grant has yet to be confirmed beyond March 2025, meaning the future of the services provided by children’s hospices across England is uncertain.

The Council has agreed to support the campaign and urge the Government to protect the Grant for a minimum of five years, increasing it each year in line with inflation.

There were emotional accounts from Council members throughout the meeting, including Cllr Kerry Murphy, who shared her own personal story of care from Acorns.

She said: “My son and my family used the services at Acorns Children’s Hospice here in Walsall. To the outside world, you look like you are only a mother to a disabled child to some people.

“Well let me tell you, you’re not only a mum. You’re a doctor, you’re a nurse, you’re a social worker, you’re an advocate, you’re a bloody wonder woman. But people will try to tell you differently.

“When you have a child with profound mental and physical disabilities, and such complex medical needs, babysitters are non-existent. When he stops breathing and you’ve got to get the medication in, it’s only trained professionals who can do it.

“You take your other kids to school, you’re watching your son all the while until your other kids come back. Then when they’re back you ask them to watch their brother for half an hour while you make the tea, so they become young carers.

“Then your husband walks in at 7pm at night, and I’ll go to bed, then he gets me up as he’s got to go to work and I’m up all night watching our son. I was a part-time mum to my other children and part-time wife.

“So when Acorns approached me and said ‘we can offer you respite’, the relief washes over you. The relief washes over you, but also the guilt, because I should be able to look after my own son. But you can’t. You really can’t.

“I don’t know if my marriage would have made it through without the work Acorns did. They looked after my other children as well, taking them to football matches and things like that, to show them they’re not the only children who have to look after someone.

“If the services are cut, there’ll be a lot of parents out there who won’t make it through. I really can’t tell you how much it means to families like me.”

To find out more about Children’s Care Matters, visit www.acorns.org.uk/campaign

A group of West Midlands MPs have written a joint letter to the Government on behalf of Acorns, calling on vital funding for children’s hospices to be secured.

The five MPs – Nigel Huddleston, Dr Neil Shastri-Hurst, Andrew Mitchell, Mark Garnier and Saqib Bhatti – wrote to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, urging the Government to protect the NHS Children’s Hospice Grant.

The Grant, worth £25 million to the sector every year and 13% of Acorns’ annual income, is essential to help provide the services that children and families across the country rely-on.

You can read the letter below. To find out more about how you can help campaign for Acorns, visit www.acorns.org.uk/campaign

A mum from Worcester has delivered a petition signed by 10,491 people to 10 Downing Street today on behalf of the children’s hospice who cared for her daughter.

The petition, launched by Acorns Children’s Hospice in July, is part of a campaign calling on the Government to safeguard a vital £2 million funding stream for the charity called the Children’s Hospice Grant.

Liz Bishop, 45, joined Acorns CEO Trevor Johnson on the steps of 10 Downing Street as the two delivered a box of signatures along with a letter to the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting.

Public backing for the campaign has been growing, with the petition to save the Grant reaching more than 10,000 signatures in just four weeks and celebrities including Julie Walters and actor Adrian Lester lending their support.

Liz’s daughter Lily-Mai was supported by Acorns for the Three Counties, the charity’s hospice in Worcester as she bravely battled a brain tumour for many years. She died at the hospice on 25^th June 2018, aged just seven.

Liz said: “Acorns is such an amazing place. They were there for us and Lily-Mai, catering to our every need. They are still helping us now and will do into the future too. We’ll forever feel like part of the Acorns family.

“This campaign is so close to my heart. More and more families need Acorns for love and care at the most difficult times. To think there could be families like ours in the future who’ll miss out on these vital services is just unimaginable.

“I hope the Government listens to our campaign and does something urgently to make sure Acorns, and every children’s hospice is protected, this year and long into the future.”

The campaign Children’s Care Matters was launched by Acorns in July in response to the uncertain future of the Children’s Hospice Grant.

Uncertainty around future funding comes as demand for end-of-life care provided to families like Liz’s at Acorns has grown by 47% in the past year.

Trevor Johnson, Acorns Chief Executive, urged people to keep supporting the campaign. He said: “Today is an important day, because we deliver a powerful message to the Government. In just a few short weeks, thousands of people have shown they recognise the importance of the vital care Acorns provides.

“We are so grateful that Liz could join us today. Her story is just one example out of hundreds of families every year who use our services. Every family we care for has a similar story to tell, and every one of them faces an uncertain future if this Grant is taken away.

“We may have delivered these signatures, but the petition will remain open, so please keep on signing, sharing, and writing to your local MP. Together we can make a difference for the countless families who rely on children’s palliative care.”

The future of the £25 million NHS Children’s Hospice Grant which is distributed annually to children’s hospices across England is uncertain. It makes up around 13% of Acorns income, a total of £2 million.

Without the grant Acorns, and many children’s hospices nationally, may be forced to cut vital services for life limited children and their families.

To find out how you can support the campaign, visit www.acorns.org.uk/campaign

We are deeply saddened to hear the news today on yet another hospice making difficult decisions and cutting services. The situation at St Giles mirrors what so many organisations across the whole sector are experiencing, affecting countless children, adults and their families.

Within the children’s hospice sector, we are extremely concerned about the future of the Children’s Hospice Grant. At Acorns, the Grant equates to £2 million or a 13% proportion of our income. For an organisation of any size to receive a sudden reduction in income at this level would be unbearable.

It’s unacceptable that in a society that prides itself in providing care from the cradle to the grave, that the vital palliative services children, adults and their families receive from hospices are primarily funded by people jumping out of aeroplanes and organising bake sales.

Hospices are under intense pressure, and without them – families in need will have no choice but to turn to already stretched NHS services that are not equipped to deal with the complex range of care and support they need.

Time is running out. Without urgent Government support, we risk leaving some of the most vulnerable in our society completely on their own.

Two of the region’s biggest names in acting, Adrian Lester and Dame Julie Walters are leading a growing list of names in support of an urgent campaign from Acorns Children’s Hospice.

The campaign, Children’s Care Matters, is calling on the Government to safeguard the Children’s Hospice Grant – a vital £2 million funding stream for Acorns, which the charity needs to continue providing its care to hundreds of local children.

Public support for the campaign has been increasing, with a petition to save the Grant reaching more than 8,000 signatures in just four weeks. Acorns will be delivering a batch of signatures to 10 Downing Street next week (4^th September) with a letter to the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting.

Birmingham born Adrian Lester and Dame Julie have joined a number of leading names, including multiple award-winning restaurateur Aktar Islam and TikTok star, Poppy O’Toole aka Poppy Cooks, calling on the public to keep signing the petition.

Aktar and Poppy gave their active support to the campaign at a petition gathering event today (29^th August) in Paradise Square, Birmingham alongside giant orange HELP letters.

Dame Julie, said: “For families going through the most difficult times, the care and emotional support provided by nurses and staff at Acorns is crucial. It makes all the difference in the world, allowing families to focus on cherishing moments of joy and love knowing they are in safe hands.

“All children’s hospices are under threat from the loss of the Children’s Hospice Grant, so I hope everyone signs the petition to help protect these wonderful places.”

Award-winning actor and director, Adrian Lester CBE is a staunch advocate for his home city of Birmingham. Known by TV audiences for his role as Mickey Bricks in the long-running BBC drama Hustle and range of roles in both Hollywood and on stage.

He said: ”How are we supposed to look after our hopes for the future if we don’t take care of our vulnerable children. The essential work Acorns Children’s Hospice does, must continue. It is a tragedy that organisations like these are starved of funding.”

Aktar Islam whose flagship restaurant Opheem received its second Michelin star in February, said: “I’m well aware of the amazing work Acorns does across the region in the lives of local families.

“The skill, expertise and compassion shown at their three hospices is irreplaceable and the fact they could be faced with turning children away due to lack of funding just doesn’t bear thinking about.

“I’d urge everyone to support this campaign, sign the petition and help safeguard this vital local charity, before it’s too late.”

Tony and wife Rini’s triplet daughters Jewel, Louisa and Milla were born 16 weeks premature in 2006. Sadly, Jewel died after 17 days. Milla and Louisa survived against the odds, coming home after six months in hospital.

Within a year Milla was diagnosed with spastic quadriplegia cerebral palsy, meaning she required 24-hour care. She was unable to walk, talk and needed a feeding tube into her stomach.

The family was referred to Acorns for the Three Counties, with Milla and Louisa both enjoying short breaks initially. After Louisa was discharged, Milla continued to visit Acorns where she would take part in different activities, sensory play, hydrotherapy and receive one-to-one care.

Tony explained: “Acorns gave my wife and I the chance of a break from the constant 24-hour-a-day care for Milla and Louisa. Broken sleep, illness, feeding regimes and medicines all took its toll on our physical, mental and emotional well being.”

It’s thanks to this support that Tony has taken on numerous challenges to help raise funds to enable us to continue our vital care for children like Milla.

Among the feats have been the Acorns Triple Run in 2014, a 200-mile cycle in 2016 and a 12-hour sing and guitar-a-thon in 2020, all of which have seen him raise thousands of pounds for Acorns.

A keen poet, Tony also published a collection of poetry, with all proceeds going towards our care.

In 2020, he became an Ambassador for Acorns as a Parent Carer Champion, advocating for children’s hospice care on a regional and national scale.

Tony’s efforts to keep Acorns in the spotlight reached yet another high in 2022, when he flew the flag for our care and support as one of 2,000 inspirational people from across the West Midlands who took on the role of Batonbearer in the Her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s Commonwealth Games Baton Relay.

“Whenever I’ve done fundraising or awareness raising activity it’s always been for a number of reasons; obviously the motivation to try and raise as much as I can for charities, in particular Acorns for their help and support, but also I made a promise to Milla when she passed away that I would always fundraise and do what I could to keep her memory alive.

“So, it’s a really special way to remember both Milla and Jewel.”