Two Hampshire hospices hit by soaring bills have been awarded more than £480,000 by the government - but say more money is needed.
Oakhaven in Lymington and Mountbatten in Southampton are both set to benefit from a £25m handout to the UK hospice movement for upgrades and refurbishments.
The cash boost - £157,402 for Oakhaven and £330,400 for Mountbatten - has been welcomed by the people in charge of the two facilities.
Oakhaven's chief executive, Andrew Ryde, said: "We are very grateful to the government for the additional funds they are providing.
"Although we cannot use the money to directly fund the day-to-day cost of our services, these funds will ease the immediate pressure on our financial situation."
But Mr Ryde repeated warnings issued by Oakhaven and other hospices in the past few months.
"At Oakhaven, just like many other hospices in the UK, we are experiencing increased demand for our services and ever-increasing costs - including the additional national insurance contributions payable from April."
As reported in the Daily Echo, the increases are set to cost Oakhaven nearly £200,000 a year.
READ MORE: Oakhaven and Mountbatten hospices hit by soaring bills
Mr Ryde said: "The government must consider the longer-term sustainability of hospices to ensure we are able to continue providing end-of-life care and support for our community free of charge.
"The sector as a whole remains under huge financial pressure and unless there is a more robust approach to NHS support for hospices there will be more hospices facing service cuts and potential closure."
Mountbatten's chief executive, Nigel Hartley, said its share of the £25m would be split between its hospices in Southampton and the Isle of Wight.
He added: "What Mountbatten desperately needs is regular and secure funding to allow us to retain existing expert clinical staff and to employ new people.
“More people than ever need Mountbatten’s services.
"There has been a 250 per cent rise in people receiving care at home in recent years with no extra money from commissioners at the NHS Integrated Care Board (ICB).
“Less one third of the money we need to operate comes from the NHS.
“Two thirds of our funding comes from the community through donations, gifts in wills, fundraising, and grants. It's this generosity that allows our expert staff to continue to support those who need us. We are increasingly reliant on this support."
Mr Ryde said the government met only 11 per cent of Oakhaven’s annual running costs, which currently totalled £9m.
"For the remaining 89 per cent we rely on the generosity of our community - on donations, gifts in wills, fundraising and income generated by our shops and social enterprise home care provider."
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