Liverpool based retailer T.J Morris Ltd, which runs the Home Bargains chain, has donated £2.5m to a fundraising appeal to save a charity's baby hospice in the city that is under threat of closure.

The donation has covered half of the £5m funding gap needed to secure the future of Zoe's Place Baby Hospice in Liverpool.

“This generous commitment reflects the overwhelming support we are receiving from the Liverpool community and beyond,” said Zoe’s Place executive trustee Joan Stainsby.

“We are immensely grateful to Home Bargains for standing with us in our time of need.”

The charity needs the money to secure the future of the hospice as it looks to find a new home in Liverpool. This may include buying, building, renovating or equipping a suitable building.

According to the latest total from its appeal, through the JustGiving fundraising platform, it has so far raised £5.7m, which is 88% of a total fundraising total of £6.4m.

However, the charity points out that this includes fundraising from before the appeal was launched and includes £3.8m of pledged, restricted funding.

It announced last month that it had hoped to build a new hospice near its current location in Liverpool. It only has nine months lease remaining on its current site, which is set to close by the end of the year.

However, planning and funding challenges meant it faced closure, leaving Liverpool without a baby hospice run by the charity, which also runs hospices in Middlesbrough and Coventry.

The threat of closure to Zoe’s Place's hospice in Liverpool comes amid funding pressures across the palliative care charity sector.

In July one in five members of Hospice UK said their charities have been forced to make cuts to services or are planning to do so over the last year.

“Too many hospices are in crisis,” said Hospice UK chief executive Toby Porter at the time.

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