Parents of children cared for a recently closed east London hospice say they will "fight" to save a place they described it as a "lifeline".
Our sister title London Now reported that Richard House Children's Hospice in Beckton went into administration on Wednesday (December 17) following reports of deep financial problems.
The Recorder reported that all charity shops across east London closed permanently last week as well.
Ben Moss, from East Ham, is the father of five-year-old Miles, who has cerebral palsy and received care at Richard House in recent months.
He is one of the leading figures in what he described as "a core strategy group that is trying to save Richard House from closure” and has interviewed other parents affected by the closure.
"It’s been pretty awful and stressful," Ben said.
"Richard House has been an absolute lifeline.
“To have that respite facility so close to us means a lot and that is down to the community they’ve fostered and the real family feel.”
Ben said he was aware the hospice was struggling financially but did not understand the extent of it until the closure was rumoured.
He claimed he was only made aware of the closure last week through hospice staff, and parents were only officially informed by the board on Tuesday (December 16).
Richard House was opened 25 years ago and is London’s oldest hospice.
It provides 12 days of respite care each year for families and looks after around 300 children.
Kareema Motala is the mother of 15-year-old Jayden who has Lowe’s syndrome - a condition that causes eye, brain and kidney problems.
She said staff at Richard House have become like family for herself and Jayden.
"They’re like the backbone and the extended family who understand things that even some of our own immediate family don’t," she said.
“We could go through six months of pure hell, instability and medical appointments; but knowing that I’ve got a break booked for one weekend allows me to carry on, and I think that’s the same for a lot of the families.
“We will fall apart as a community and the brunt of that will go to social care or hospitals."
NHS North East London Integrated Care Board (ICB) has confirmed that Haven House in Woodford Green will take on the caseload from Richard House, but Kareema and Ben fear the new hospice won't be able to cope with the increase in children and some families will live too far away to travel to it.
A protest has been organised by the parent group for 12pm tomorrow (Saturday, December 20) outside the hospice.
Ben knows it will be too late to save Richard House in its current form. He said: “What we’re hoping to do is get pledges in place for donations that will be used to reinstate the charity with a fresh board rather than just be used for debt.
“This will coincide with the protests but the protests will also link to the wider issue of asking how is it that the critical care infrastructures that are there for the absolute most vulnerable in society are left to charity and chance?”
Emma Phillips' son, six-year-old Alexander, has short bowel syndrome and had a major operation removing most of his bowel on the day he was born.
Alexander was in hospital for seven and a half months and to this day is fed artificially through medical equipment.
“These children are warriors – they go through so much and they know what pain is," Emma said.
“Our kids have fought their whole lives and we will fight for this
“It needs to be saved - all of the good aspects of our lives are now at risk."
A petition against the closure has received over 3,350 signatures since December 6.
This paper contacted Richard House for a comment but Adam Stephens from administrators S&W Group instead provided the following statement.
“Following the recent decision by the trustees of Richard House Children’s Hospice to cease operations, Adam Stephens and Lee Manning of S&W were appointed joint administrators of the charity on December 17, 2025.
“Over the past year, the directors worked to try to secure the charity’s future, exploring numerous options to improve its financial position.
"Unfortunately, despite these efforts, no viable solution could be found to overcome the significant financial challenges.
“As a result, all services at Richard House ceased on December 17, 2025. Families are in the process of being contacted to discuss the handover of care, and staff will remain on site throughout December to support this process.
“The joint administrators are working closely with Richard House staff, local services, and the integrated care board to ensure a smooth transition and minimise disruption for children and families.
"The joint administrators’ immediate priority is to support Richard House staff and service users during this difficult time.
"At this time, no further donations should be made to any of the trust’s donation platforms. Anyone with any questions should contact rht@swgroup.com.”
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