The Welsh Government is committed to continually improving both adult and paediatric palliative and end-of-life care. We will continue to work with hospices to ensure that they are able to access the support and funding that they need. We currently invest £8.4 million annually to support specialist palliative care services. Much of this, of course, goes to support adult and children's hospices. We've also allocated £9.3 million in emergency funding to hospices throughout the pandemic to protect their core clinical services and to strengthen bereavement support. I think all of us are aware that their usual sources of income from the public have significantly been reduced through this last extraordinary year. In fact, over £2 million of this funding has been allocated to our children's hospices here in Wales. This Government remains committed to working with the end-of-life care board to review funding for hospices, and this work is currently being taken forward.

Following the previous debate in the Chamber on palliative care in February, I issued a written statement updating Members on the wider work that is ongoing across both adult and children's palliative care. That included a stock take by the end-of-life care board, which will establish a baseline of capacity across both adult and children's services. It will also offer consideration on developments required to meet future need. I think that's really the point that's been made here: how do we ensure that funding meets the needs that we understand will take place in the future. The stock take, which will be available later this month, has been informed by a service model to address equitable access for children with life-limiting illness in Wales that has been developed by Dr Richard Hain. He is the clinical lead for paediatric palliative care in Wales. The written statement also confirmed that the stock take will be supported by a paediatric palliative care means assessment, and that will provide robust data on which to plan services for children and young people here in Wales. That work is currently being commissioned.

Last month, I met the chief executives of Tŷ Hafan and Tŷ Gobaith to discuss the 'Family Voices' report and their proposal for a lifeline fund. We had a useful and constructive discussion on the move towards a more sustainable model of funding for hospices—more aligned with peer charities in other UK nations—and of course the importance of respite care. We continue to value the help and support that all of our unpaid carers provide in often emotionally very difficult circumstances. They are an essential part of our health and care system here in Wales. That's why I'm pleased that, yesterday, we launched our new strategy for unpaid carers. That strategy outlines our existing support for unpaid carers and looks ahead to how we can improve support to make sure that all carers have a life alongside their caring responsibilities. It sets out four revised national priorities to be followed by a more detailed delivery plan this autumn. Respite and short breaks are a key area of focus within that new strategy.

The current support for unpaid carers, of course, includes funding within the local government settlement for local authorities to deliver their duty to support unpaid carers under the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014. We're also providing £1 million of annual funding to local health boards and their carer partnerships, together with money that is available through the intermediate care fund. Regional partnership boards continue to develop a range of activities, targeting key groups, which can include provision of both direct and indirect support for carers. That includes opportunities for short breaks. We're also providing funding to the Family Fund to provide grants to families and disabled children for respite and short breaks and other items.

This week, I published the national clinical framework. That sets out how clinical services should develop over the coming decade and confirms the introduction of quality statements to set expectations for specific clinical services. The national clinical framework describes how a nationally agreed clinical pathway and national programmes, such as end-of-life care, will support better system planning and quality improvement in the delivery of our services. There'll be a new national programme for palliative and end-of-life care that will be established, again with a high-level quality statement for end-of-life care being developed, and that in itself will significantly raise the profile of end-of-life care within our health boards and bring a renewed focus with accountability to this agenda.

While work is being undertaken, I've extended the existing end-of-life care delivery plan to March next year, together with £1 million of funding to support implementation, while those new arrangements have time to bed in and take proper grip. This extension will allow for reflection on the lessons learned and new models of care that have had to be used during the pandemic, as well as a consideration of priorities by any new Welsh Government. Any new plan for end-of-life care delivery would need to be both driven by clinicians and patient voices and fit with the vision that is set out in the national clinical framework. The work to develop the national framework for the delivery of bereavement care is also continuing, and Members will know that that's now subject to an eight-week consultation. That sets out core principles and minimum standards, and again is supported by £1 million of additional funding. That framework has been overseen by the national bereavement steering group, which has both hospice representation and children and young people's bereavement charities included within its membership.

Finally, I do want to pay tribute to the vital role of all of our hospice staff, both for adults and children, and the work they undertake to deliver palliative and end-of-life care. In particular for this debate, I'd like to recognise the contribution they make to children and young people and their families living with a life-limiting illness. I am tremendously grateful to all of them for maintaining this essential support throughout the pandemic in the most difficult of circumstances. I can reassure the Chamber that this Welsh Government remains committed to ensuring that everyone has access to high-quality adult and paediatric palliative and end-of-life care. We will continue to work with both children and adult hospices across Wales to deliver on that commitment, including the review, and then the results in delivery of the review of funding. Thank you, Llywydd.