Local charity St Giles Hospice threw a surprise party to say ‘goodbye and a huge thank you’ to a true stalwart among its staff.

Clinical Nurse Specialist Maureen Bennett (known as ‘Mo’) is retiring in March having cared for local people living with cancer and other serious illnesses for an awe-inspiring 25 years.

Mo, (63) who lives with husband Alan in Tamworth, began her career at St Giles when it first opened in 1983, working as an Enrolled Nurse in the In-Patient Unit.

Having completed a conversion course a few years later, Mo became a Registered Nurse and shortly afterwards joined the Community Team – where she has been ever since. The dedicated nurse even learnt to drive so she could care for more local people in their own homes.

Kay Greene, Community Palliative Care Team Manager says: “As part of the team for a quarter of a century, we will be very sorry to see Mo go. We have been lucky to have enjoyed the company of such a dedicated nurse for so many years.

“Over the years hundreds of local patients have benefited from the care, support and compassion she provides.

“We all hope Mo can now enjoy extra time with her family and two grandchildren and spend more time relaxing in her garden, reading, knitting and assisting at Tamworth Rugby Club. Not seeing her smiling face around the hospice will take some getting used to!”

St Giles Hospice spends over £5million every year providing its specialist services, as well as supporting families and carers. With just a third of this funded by the Government, the registered charity relies heavily on donations and fundraising – including proceeds from the St Giles Hospice Lottery and the hospice’s network of 14 charity shops.

Patients come from across the hospice’s catchment area, which ranges from Ashby de la Zouch and Atherstone in the east, to Cannock and Walsall in the west – and from Burton and Uttoxeter in the north, to Sutton Coldfield and Coleshill in the south.

Care is offered at the hospice's facilities in Sutton Coldfield and Whittington between Lichfield and Tamworth, or in patients' own homes across the region.