ARCHETYPAL English Rose actress Susan Hampshire was in Lymington to open the £580,000 first phase of Oakhaven Hospice’s redevelopment programme.

The nine-month project has seen the half of Pennington Chase House lived in by hospice benefactor the late Phoebe Coates transformed to provide complementary therapy facilities, physiotherapy rooms, bereavement counselling quarters, new staff quarters and an education centre where nurses and care staff from across the area can learn more about palliative care.

The actress’s visit was a double celebration for hospice trustees, 80 full and part-time staff, 300 volunteers and numerous fund-raisers, because it also marked the beginning of phase two of the redevelopment.

Costing £1 million, phase two will involve creating a link between Pennington Chase House and the existing eight-room in-patient building.

The link will house another four in-patient units, a garden room, facilities for friends and relatives of patients to spend some quiet time, and a circular multi-faith chapel.

Two-thirds of the money has been raised locally through the hospice’s shops in Highcliffe, Lymington, New Milton and Hythe, other fund-raising ventures and legacies.

The remaining £396,000 has come from the Department of Health.

After welcoming Oakhaven patron Susan Hampshire in front of a large gathering of supporters, trustees’ chairman Cllr Keith Mans thanked them for their help over the past 20 years.

Oakhaven chief executive Andrew Ryde said phase one had really helped hospice staff improve services.

He pointed out the real costs were the running costs.

Hampshire Primary Care Trust provides 18 per cent while the remainder is down to fund-raising.

“We’d like to see a more equitable across the board from the government, but until then we look to you to provide funding,” he reminded guests.

Susan Hampshire, who lost her parents George and June to cancer in their early 60s, said she was very happy to be invited to carry out the opening and the day facilities were “absolutely fantastic”.

She had not realised previously that it cost £3m a year to run the hospice.

“You all must be very generous and very nice people,” she said.