The Kentown Children’s Palliative Care Programme

The Kentown Children’s Palliative Care Programme is a community-focused initiative in North West England covering Lancashire and South Cumbria.

The pilot, a collaboration between Together for Short Lives, Rainbow Trust Children’s Charity and NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board, has brought nurses, family support workers and family service co-ordinators together to offer a new, innovative and complementary package of clinical, social, emotional and practical support. The care has been delivered in the home and in the community and adapted  to meet the  needs of each child and family.

The programme was funded by The Kentown Wizard Foundation. If you live in Lancashire and South Cumbria and would like to find out if you are eligible for support, please email: helpline@togetherforshortlives.org.uk.

Evaluation of the programme

The evaluation, conducted by Edge Hill University and led by Dr. Kate Knighting, found:

• Holistic impact: over 250 families were referred to the programme, with a third benefiting from integrated nursing, family support, and coordination.
• Deep emotional connection: Families felt genuinely seen and heard through relationship-based care, describing the support as having transformed their ability to navigate complex systems.
• Inclusive and accessible: tThe programme reached families who had not previously accessed specialist children’s palliative care, offering a vital alternative route that embraced the whole family.

Following its success, the programme has been extended in Lancashire and South Cumbria and has expanded into Greater Manchester, funded by Kentown Support.