A local hospice has received a donation of £2,000 from Amazon’s delivery station in Croydon to support its efforts in the fight against COVID-19.

St Raphael’s Hospice in Sutton has received the donation part of the ‘Amazon in the Community’ programme, where the company supports the communities around its operating locations across the UK.

The charity offers high-quality medical and nursing care for people in Merton and Sutton with cancer and other life-limiting illnesses. Thousands of patients and those close to them benefit from the palliative services provided, which include home-based care, in-patient care, wellbeing services, and bereavement support.

The donation will allow St Raphael’s Hospice to continue its extensive support and reach those in the community affected by terminal illnesses, as the current pandemic has posed a financial challenge to the charity as well as a clinical one.

Speaking on the donation, Curtis Gaffney, Delivery Station Manager at Amazon in Croydon, said:

“St Raphael’s Hospice is doing vital work in our community to help those most in need as a result of COVID-19 and we wanted to support their efforts with this donation. The services offered by the charity’s staff and volunteers have never been more important and I’d like to thank them for everything they’re doing for our community during these challenging times.”

Sara Jane Woods, Director of Communications and Fundraising, from St Raphael’s Hospice, added:

“This donation will allow us to continue providing palliative care for terminally ill patients in our community, which is proving particularly challenging during COVID-19. Thank you to Amazon in Croydon for this support.”

Community donations is one of a number of ways in which Amazon is supporting communities across the UK during COVID-19.

Amazon has joined a coalition of companies, universities, and research institutions to boost testing capacity for COVID-19. Amazon’s logistics network, along with Royal Mail, will deliver test kits to critical workers and diagnostic sites set up around the UK.

Amazon is also providing free online STEM resources to students in lower-income communities to enable learning to continue during school closures and is working with charity partner Magic Breakfast to ensure they can continue to provide free breakfast provisions to children in disadvantaged areas.