AN end-of-life hospice that was robbed of thousands of pounds by its former director of finance has spoken out on ‘welcoming’ the jail sentence imposed on the fraudster.

Nigel Garner was sentenced to 20 months in prison at Chester Crown Court on Tuesday after pleading guilty to one count of fraud by abuse of position.

It was heard in court how Garner, of Park Lane, Higher Walton, over a short period of time, fraudulently stole more than £6,000 from Halton Haven Hospice, a charity that provides palliative care to terminally ill patients.

The defendant was hired as director of finance, transformation and sustainability in April 2023 and in a matter of months had made payments through the hospice - which is funded largely on donations - to purchase an expensive new Range Rover and car insurance, among other things.

This was despite being paid a comfortable wage of £50,000 a year by the charity.

It was not until the 56-year-old was dismissed by the hospice in January for unrelated incidents, that an internal and police investigation was carried out which exposed Garner’s fraudulent dealings.

This revealed payments made through the hospice by Garner to Beaverbrooks, Halfords, Screwfix, the Jolly Thresher pub in Lymm and payments to a solicitor.

While the main bulk of the spending went on a £2,000 deposit for a £50,000 Range Rover and two £901.96 car finance payments for the vehicle.

In total the Hospice was at a loss of £6,918.86. This was subsequently paid back by the defendant prior to his sentencing.

Nigel Garner was jailed this weekNigel Garner was jailed this week (Image: Cheshire Police)

The CEO of Halton Haven Hospice, Viv Culleton, provided a comment on the outcome of the sentencing.

She said: “Nigel Garner was employed at Halton Haven Hospice as director of finance, transformation and sustainability from April 2023 to January 2024. 

“This was a position of trust and responsibility which Mr Garner chose to abuse by defrauding the Hospice for his own personal benefit. 

“The fraud took place over a short period of time and was detected quickly by our internal processes. 

“We notified the police immediately and co-operated fully with them throughout the investigation.”

During the sentencing it was also heard how Garner’s fraudulent spending had a detrimental effect on the hospice in the months that followed and still now.

And immediate action had to be taken by the hospice including putting a stop to all recruitment, allowing only critical spending to be made for fear of running out of funds completely and particularly the delay the offending caused in the hospice building two new important clinics.

Ms Culleton continued: “Halton Haven is a Hospice providing palliative and end of life care for terminally ill patients in Halton.

“Nigel Garner’s actions occurred at a time when Hospice funding is fragile and uncertain. 

“He has not only let himself down but has betrayed the patients, staff and volunteers at the heart of the Hospice as well as its whole community of supporters.

“We welcome the sentence handed to Mr Garner and we hope that with the continued support of our stakeholders and supporters we can draw a line under this difficult period and continue to provide our valuable services.”