Martin's House Children's Hospice

The aim of Martin House is to provide family led care for children with life-limiting conditions.

It is a place where children, young people and their families can come to stay from time to time along their journey and find support, rest and practical help. It is a place of love and understanding, a peaceful place but one that can also have a lively, friendly atmosphere full of fun and laughter, where children and their families can enjoy the best quality of life.

A proportion of children might use the hospice for a relatively short time, for example if they have a malignant disease such as cancer, where palliation is a treatment option. Others have longer term progressive disorders such as Spinal Muscular Atrophy or Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, or a metabolic disease such as Batten's. These children might use the hospice over a much longer period of time.

Their role is to ensure that in everything they, they place the family at the centre and value each member of the family as individuals with their own needs.

They acknowledge and respect the expertise of the parents as the main carers of their sick child. They recognise the prime importance of listening to the children, young people and their families and are a resource for them in helping them make well informed choices about care, treatment and end of life issues.

They always strive to be as flexible as possible and adapt to the needs of the individual child and their family. To this end, they have accommodation for both parents and siblings so that the family can choose to stay or not with their child depending on their individual circumstances.