How new Martin House Children's Hospice project will transform the lives of Leeds families

Martin House Children’s Hospice has officially unveiled a multi-million pound transformation which will have a “huge impact” on children and young people with life-shortening illnesses across West Yorkshire.

The BUILD, is a £21.9m project which has created new specialist facilities including a hydrotherapy pool, immersive sensory room, and enhanced clinical spaces, to modernise and expand the hospice.

The new look was unveiled yesterday (May 5) by long-standing Martin House ambassador Sir Gareth Southgate who said he hoped the transformation will “future-proof” the hospice for the next twenty years.

Clair Holdsworth, CEO of Martin House, said she believed that 2026, which is just one year before Martin House turns 40, was the right time for change.

“Martin House was the second children’s hospice in the country. We had a building that was built in the 1980s and children are much more complex now.

“We really needed this space.”

Clair said the charity is “blown away” by the support from the public which has made the BUILD possible, and that she wants the hospice to be a space for families to “create memories” during “the worst time in their lives.”

Clair said: “We’re hoping that the facilities now match the really high standards of care that we have provided.

“We are just so grateful to the people of Yorkshire and beyond.”

The design of the redevelopment was decided through consultations with the Martin House community who will benefit from the hospice’s services.

Vicki Greensmith, Director of Clinical Services at Martin House, says it has been an “amazing thing” to see the Martin House’s community’s ideas turned into a reality.

Vicki said: That’s been the best part, seeing people come into the space and say this is what we asked for.

“It’s amazing for them to see that they’ve got a real impact on the care that they’re going to receive in the environment”

A standout feature of the redevelopment is a new hydrotherapy pool, which Vicki said was the “number one” request from the Martin House community.

Vicki said: “A lot of children who were under our caseload have never been in a swimming pool. They’re too sick or they would find a normal temperature too difficult, (or) the access to getting to a pool can be difficult.”

“We’ve got an amazing hydrotherapy team now with physiotherapists who are really working hard on showing that anybody who wants to go in the pool can, and that’s an incredible thing to aim for.”

Martin House has also introduced a new education centre which will deliver specialist children’s palliative care education to professionals across Yorkshire.

Other changes now visible at Martin House include a refurbished woodlands-themed children’s wing and a Love Island-style courtyard designed to give older patients their own space.

Ava is a two-year-old girl who is cared for by Martin House.

Her family first discovered the charity after Ava becoming suddenly unwell, and they say Martin House is a “comforting, friendly, and dedicated” support hub.

Ava’s mother Mehreen Rehman said: “When Ava was diagnosed, our whole world changed completely. We just couldn’t really fathom that our daughter had such a genetic condition.

“Martin House came home first just to introduce themselves and laid out what they could do. It was quite amazing.

“They just swooped us under their wing and at that point we really did feel alone because nobody really had a child like Ava.”

Through Martin House, Mehreen said her family has accessed multiple avenues of help including care for Ava, support for her siblings, and connections to other families in similar situations.

For Mehreen, the BUILD feels like a “massive” step forward in increasing the support Martin House can provide.

Mehreen said: “It’s a great boost for morale and great for the staff to be in the new amazing facility.

“We’ve already stayed in the children’s wing that was one of the first ones that was built and really had such a lovely stay - our girls think of this as a holiday.

“(Martin House) is a place for very complex children but the fact that they can emulate in a way that people think they’re on holiday here - how amazing is that?”