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Hospice care is one of the UK’s outstanding success stories. It
has radically transformed the way we care for those at the end of
their life. Help the Hospices, the national charity for the
hospice movement, provides support to hospices through -
training, education, grant-aid, advice and national
fundraising events.
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Given completely free of charge, the majority of hospice care in
the UK is provided by around 200 local charities. The costs are
high - collectively around £484 million a year. The Government
contributes an average of 33% of running costs for adult hospices
and 15% for children’s (England). The rest is dependent on
charitable fund raising.
Hospices care for those suffering from cancer and other terminal
illnesses, whilst also providing support to their friends and
families. They provide a wide range of services - pain control,
symptom relief, skilled nursing care, counselling, complementary
therapies, spiritual care, art, music, physiotherapy, reminiscence,
beauty treatments and bereavement support - through the able
skills of both staff and volunteers. The care provided
is based upon individual need and personal choice.
"The support and expertise of all the staff
was beyond anything we had ever imagined. It extended beyond
patient care and involved our entire family. We never ceased to be
amazed by the degree of help, understanding and empathy shown by
everybody."
Son of a hospice patient
Further information about the charity can be obtained from
www.helpthehospices.org.uk
The causes Towergate are supporting in
2009
Masters in Hospice Leadership in
conjunction with Lancaster University Management
School
The Towergate Charitable Foundation continues
to provide the funds for a postgraduate qualification designed to
address development needs and challenges facing leaders in
palliative and end-of-life care. Towergate expect to invest £50,000
in bursaries for eligible candidates.
A pilot programme was developed in 2008 which was for hospice
chief executives, senior managers and suitably qualified people who
aspired to lead hospices both in the UK and overseas.
Participants had the option to exit with a Diploma in Hospice
Leadership and/or take a two-year break and then resume their
studies.
Read the list of bursaries paid in
2008
Professional Development Grants (PDG’s) - Restricted
fund: £25,000
Hospice PDG’s are given to doctors, nurses and other hospice
professionals across the UK to help them in their continued
professional development. Grants of up to £750 are given to help
people undertake a variety of courses from a Masters in Palliative
Care to a day course in helping children through the bereavement
process. The Towergate Charitable Foundation’s support will enable
us to give around 40 grants to help hospice staff give the best
possible care to people with a life-limiting or terminal
illness.
Strategic hospice support - Restricted fund:
£80,000
In consultation with our members, Help the Hospices has
identified two key strategic areas where we will be supporting
hospices in 2009/10: supporting hospices in negotiations with local
Primary Care Trusts and fundraising support.
The publication of the government’s first End of Life Care
strategy in 2008 has highlighted the need for hospices to clearly
demonstrate the impact they are making on end of life care in the
communities they serve. By doing so, hospices may be able to
increase the percentage of their income that they receive from
their local Primary Care Trust. Help the Hospices will help them
achieve this through workshops and face-face meetings to support
hospice leaders in these complex negotiations.
There is also a growing need to assist hospice fundraising
through the sharing of best practice and running programmes of
support, which is extremely important as we navigate these
uncertain economic times. We believe that by supporting hospices in
both raising funds and through negotiations with Primary Care
Trusts, we will have the biggest impact at this time.
Help the Hospices Corporate DVD
Help the Hospices is in need of a new corporate film that we can
show to a variety of audiences. There is often a need to show a
more uplifting film about our work in presentations to potential
funders etc.
Causes supported in 2008
Helping Local Hospices with
Towergate Grants
The ongoing support of the Towergate Charitable Foundation is
hugely appreciated and has made a massive difference to hospice
care in recent years. We believe the programme of work outlined
above will have the biggest possible impact on the work of both
Help the Hospices and hospices in 2009/10.
In addition, Towergate staff at offices across
the country, raised nearly £24k
for their local hospices between January and June 2009. This
amount was doubled by the Towergate Charitable Foundation and paid
directly to the local Hospice.
See the latest fund raising stories
from Towergate businesses across the UK on behalf of local
hospices and other charities.
David Praill, the Chief Executive of Help the
Hospices said:
"It is really remarkable how much Towergate staff have got
behind supporting their local hospice and equally impressive that
they are willing to throw themselves out of aeroplanes to raise
money!
All good wishes - many congratulations and a huge thank you
to all involved."
