FURSDON House and its gardens are to be opened to the public to raise funds for Hospiscare. 

The ancient country estate near Cadbury will be open on Wednesday, July 31 from 2pm to 5pm. 

Its “beautiful peaceful hillside gardens” have “wonderful views across parkland towards Dartmoor”. 

Sheltered by the house, hedges and cob walls, the gardens feature terraces of roses, herbs and perennials in mixed traditional and contemporary planting styles. 

Entry to the gardens costs £6 for adults and £1 for children aged five to 16. Entry to both the house and the gardens costs £12 for adults and £3 for children aged five to 16. 

Refreshments in the form of cream teas, cakes and apple juice will be available. 

Dogs are allowed on short leads. There will be toilets available for use but no accessible toilets. There is ramp access to the tearoom, but wheelchair access is limited in the garden. 

Parking is available at the on-site car park. 

Just 15 per cent of Hospiscare’s funding comes from the NHS – compared to the national average of 27 per cent – and the rest from charitable donations. 

The charity announced this month that it has been forced to restructure its at-home care service with staff redundancies likely. 

It comes due to a funding shortfall exacerbated by soaring prices and a significant drop in income from gifts in wills. 

The hospice had already taken steps to tackle the crisis, including reducing its administration costs and cutting the number of beds on its ward in Exeter.