Some of Hampshire's most seriously ill will benefit from a huge lottery cash boost awarded this week to healthcare services for children.

Naomi House Children's Hospice, which supports terminally-ill children and their families, has won its bid for a share of the New Opportunities Fund grant for children's specialist palliative care.

It is the first time the hospice, which serves families from across the South, has benefited from lottery cash.

The £644,000 award is spread over three years and will contribute towards the running costs of the Sutton Scotney hospice, which provides one-to-one care in a home-from-home atmosphere, free to families.

Khalid Aziz, chairman of trustees, said: "This is a significant milestone, as it's the first time we have received lottery money.

"It gives us a firm base for our fund-raising, but we will still rely heavily on the generosity of the public and the efforts of our staff and volunteers throughout the seven counties we serve."

Winchester and Eastleigh Healthcare NHS Trust and Southampton City Primary Care Trust were also recipients of grants.

Over the next three years, over £450,000 will be ploughed into services for terminally-ill children and their families.

A total of £378,763 has been allocated to the home-based palliative care service, with a further £74,637 going to the trust's Children's Bereavement Service.

Between 70-100 children in Winchester, Eastleigh and Andover are expected to benefit.

The cash will provide and maintain a multi-disciplinary approach to care, including specialist nursing, support, monitoring and advice.

Under the nurse-led scheme, each child and family will be assessed according to their needs and services will be provided in close partnership with Eastleigh & Test Valley Primary Care Trust, Mid-Hants Primary Care Trust and Southampton Primary Care Trust. In a separate payout, Southampton trust received just over £460,000.

Cathy Williams, clinical paediatrics services manager for Winchester & Eastleigh Healthcare NHS Trust said: "We are delighted with the lottery money. We will use the money to provide relief care to children with life limiting illnesses and be able to offer more support to their families."

The package is part of an £8.3m boost for the region and is the largest single investment in temporary relief care for children in the South.

Over the next three years, £3.7m will help fund home-based palliative care teams for children, with another £3.2m for specialist relief care in hospices. Bereavement services will benefit from £577,489.

The final £796,100 will fund home-based temporary relief care for adults, including existing community teams offering home care.

The cash means more patients with cancer and other life-threatening conditions can access a wider range of services.