The Western Australian Planning Commision (WAPC) has approved WA’s first purpose-built Children’s Hospice.
With its confirmed location in Swanbourne, this $33 million facility will provide respite and palliative care for children and their families.
WA Premier Roger Cook said: “My Government welcomes the Western Australian Planning Commission’s approval of the new Children’s Hospice and this is a tremendous outcome for all Western Australians.
“This beautifully designed and situated hospice will make a tremendous difference to the West Australian families going through what is the most challenging of journeys.”
WA Health Minister Amber-Jase Sanderson added: “The hospice will be the central hub from which statewide paediatric palliative care services are coordinated to support holistic care for children and their families across WA.”
The Children’s Hospice Project is a partnership between the Child and Adolescent Health Service (CAHS) and Perth Children’s Hospital Foundation (PCHF).
Funding for the project has been provided by the State and Federal Governments as well as generous donations from PCHF through Lotterywest, the WA community and local businesses.
The hospice will include:
- seven single-guest bedrooms with ensuite
- a two-bedroom family suite with ensuite and a connecting guest bedroom
- two two-bedroom family suites with ensuite and private terrace
- a bereavement suite with a private car bay
- a hydrotherapy pool
- a fenced playground
- garden spaces with a memorial garden
- indoor play areas
- communal living and dining areas
- meeting rooms
- therapy and clinical spaces
The state-of-the-art facility was designed with the aim to provide families with specialist care and treatment in a home-like environment that is unlike a clinical hospital.
Perth Children’s Hospital Foundation Chairman Ian Campbell states that the Children’s Hospice will serve as a ‘home away from home’ as it will be located by the beach and surrounded by nature.
Campbell claims that the facility will allow families to create precious memories together and find moments of joy in a space where they feel welcomed, safe and comfortable.
“Our unwavering goal is to build the best possible environment for these very deserving children, and over the past 18 months a rigorous planning process has been undertaken to mitigate and manage an potential risks.
“For the 2,000 children affected by life-limiting conditions across the state and their parents, siblings and extended families, this long-awaited facility will fill a significant gap in children’s respite and end of life care,” said Campbell.
Construction is set to commence in early 2024, with the hospice set to open towards the end of 2025.