Ayrshire Hospice kicked off its summer of barbecue campaigning on Friday, June 2 to encourage the Ayrshire community to support Scotland’s hospices.

The Big Scotch Beef Sizzle, an initiative created by Scotland’s Hospices Together - a partnership of nine of Scotland’s independent hospices and the Children’s Hospice Association Scotland (CHAS) - hopes to fuel a burst of BBQ activity during June to raise funds for end of life care providers around the country.

The nation-wide campaign, supported by Scotch Beef PGI, will encourage Scots to get flame grilling steaks and burgers in aid of their local hospice - whatever the weather.

Colin Loy, Director of Finance and Income Generation at Ayrshire Hospice and Board Member of Scotland’s Hospices Together said: “Scotland’s hospice care goes far beyond offering inpatient beds, with much of our care centred in the community while providing home-based support.

“We rely heavily on the generosity of our supporters through kind donations and volunteer work to ensure we are able to continue improving people’s experiences and so we’re very excited to be launching the collective’s first ever national fundraising campaign today.

“We hope that this will inspire as many people as possible to host their own Big Scotch Beef Sizzle to raise the vital funds needed to support their local community care.”

ACCORD Hospice, Ardgowan Hospice, Ayrshire Hospice, CHAS, Highland Hospice, The Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice, St Andrew’s Hospice, St Columba’s Hospice, St Vincent’s Hospice and Strathcarron Hospice have joined forces to form the national partnership, Scotland’s Hospices Together, with the shared aim of supporting and highlighting the work of hospice care in Scotland.

These charitable hospices provide free person-centred and family-focused palliative care to over 20,000 patients and families around Scotland every year, and reach even more people indirectly.
Carol McLaren, Head of Communications at Quality Meat Scotland, said:

“This is a great opportunity for people to hone their culinary skills in a fun setting whilst supporting these organisations which are at the heart of our communities.

“To get you into the summer spirit, come rain or shine, we’ve compiled a selection of first rate Scotch Beef PGI recipes at www.scotchkitchen.co.uk.

So get your steaks and burgers on the barby for a sociable way to support a great cause.”

For more information on how to get involved with The Big Scotch Beef Sizzle and to download your starter pack visit: http://www.scotlandshospices.org/events/scotch-beef-sizzle.aspx Recipes and information about Scotch Beef PGI, can be found at www.scotchkitchen.co.uk or follow @ScotchKitchen on Facebook or Twitter.