Entrepreneur donates £1 million to Hospice Isle of Man

Wed, 02 Aug 2023

Retired Manx entrepreneur, Ivan Soulsbury has donated £1m to Hospice Isle of Man in response to the current challenges around the charity’s financial position.

Soulsbury has asked “other independently wealthy individuals on Island and to all corporate organisations to rally behind the hospice as it recovers from a very challenging period”.

Hospice recently released its financial results for 2022, stating a £3.16 million loss. Legacy income was down against budget by some £1.2 million, the unmaterialized loss on investments was in excess of £673,000 whilst at the same time Hospice was subject to significant increases in running costs, primarily due to increases in demand for services, salary increases and the impact of inflation on key operational costs including energy.

Mr Soulsbury said  he recognised that “Hospice is in need of urgent and immediate funding to help secure its future” and “ensure our Island continues to benefit from a world class organisation that provides such a range of services to patients and families”.

John Knight, CEO of Hospice said: “Whilst this is clearly an incredibly generous gift it is also an opportunity to extend its impact even further as Ivan is open minded about his funds being matched by others.

“Whilst we are marking 40 years of palliative care provided to the community, we are also striving to map out the coming 40 years and ensure Hospice remains the core provider of palliative and end of life care on Island.”

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