Sector news and updates

Keep up-to-date with discussions and activity around assisted dying by bookmarking our information page for members.

We are pleased to announce a new project to support members navigating organisational turnaround in the current financial climate.

This project will be co-ordinated by Simon Hopkins, who has decades of experience leading and supporting organisations in the private, public and charitable sectors through financial turnarounds. He will be working closely with David Burland, who has worked in and around the hospice sector for the last thirty years.

The project was launched at the Hospice Trustee Network session on 19 March. Watch the video of the session in which Simon and David explain more about how it will work. Jeremy Lune, CEO of Prospect Hospice, also presented on how they have developed a proactive, integrated, bold fundraising strategy to help address their deficit situation.

This will be an iterative project which is envisaged to contain several elements. However, a central one will be a Turnaround Toolkit, which itself will be updated over time. It is planned to present the first version of this toolkit at a Big Conversation event on 24 June from 11:00 to 12:00.

We are keen to hear from hospices with experience of turnaround, or those anticipating the need for this kind of support, who would be willing to share reflections or advice needs. In both cases, please contact David Burland. We understand that for some confidentiality will be necessary and requests in this regard will be respected.

Sign up for Year 3 of the National Hospice Legacy Campaign is open until 31 March 2026. 

Taking part is more important than ever. While we begin to gather information about the campaign’s most recent activity, the results from year 1 showed what we can achieve when we act together. Thanks to all the hospices involved, we saw a staggering 904% increase in Gifts in Wills webpage traffic, a 409% rise in legacy enquiries, and 18.1 million adults reached with a unified message about hospice care. None of this would have been possible without collective investment from hospices across the UK.

If your hospice hasn’t yet signed up, you can do so on our website today.

To help share the message about why this campaign matters, we have created a film for you to share internally with boards, teams and other stakeholders.  Including interviews with Hospice UK staff and members of the steering group, the film tells the story of how and why the campaign started, the importance of continued investment, and the results achieved so far. You can watch the film online now.

To find out more about what we have planned for year 3, you can also watch a recording of our year 3 webinar.

We hope you will join us for another year of this award-winning campaign – the power of these initiatives lies in our collective strength.

Our next National Transitions community of practice meeting is on Thursday 26 March, from 10:00 to 11:30.

Ben Troke, a lawyer in the health and social care sector and partner in a law firm, is joining us for the second part of our 'Transition - Legal aspects of young adult care' sessions. In this meeting he will cover: 

• Gillick competence
• parental responsibility and disputes
• transition into the Mental Capacity Act

To take part, please sign up to join the National Transitions community of practice. You will then be sent a meeting invitation.

Our next Progressive Neurological Conditions community of practice meeting is on Tuesday 5 May, from 10:00 to 11:30.

We will be hearing from some great speakers:

• Dr Edward Richfield, Consultant in Elderly Medicine at North Bristol NHS Trust
• Paula Brown, Head of Clinical Care and Education at St Marys Hospice

To take part, please sign up to join the Progressive Neurological Conditions community of practice. You will then be sent a meeting invitation.

On Wednesday 18 March, the Public Accounts Committee released its report into the financial sustainability of adult hospices in England.

The report is clear that “the government and NHS England are not responding to the growing financial crisis in the adult hospice sector with the seriousness and urgency the situation demands”.

We have put together a briefing summarising the key takeaways and recommendations from the report.

If you have any questions or would like more information, please email our policy team.

Last week DHSC published the Neighbourhood Health Framework, which sets out how the NHS, local authorities and wider partners should work together to deliver neighbourhood health services as set out in the 10 Year Health Plan. 

We have produced a briefing outlining key points in the framework, and we recommend reading the full framework.

If you are part of a neighbourhood health pilot locally, please email our policy team to share your learnings and experiences.

Hospice professionals in England can now apply for two fully-funded apprenticeship opportunities. These courses are delivered in partnership with Corndel.

Level 4 Data Analyst Diploma

This 16-month programme is co-delivered with Imperial Executive Education and supported by Microsoft. It is designed for people who work with, use and manipulate data as a fundamental part of their role and who would like to elevate their skills.

Topics covered on this course include machine learning, AI and data science, GDPR and impact reporting. Learners will strengthen their ability to build performance dashboards, apply advanced analytics, and to embed best practices in data security, agility and analytics governance. 

Level 4 Project Management Diploma

This new programme is designed to support people who manage or contribute to projects in hospice settings. Participants will develop practical, in‑role project management capability, building skills and professional behaviours needed to deliver projects effectively in complex, resource‑pressured environments. 
 
If you would like more information about these courses, please visit our website and register to attend an online insight session. For information about making your application, please contact Corndel.

Last week we held a webinar on the next phase of our Fair Funding Campaign, sharing how hospices can get involved as the campaign gathers pace.

The session covered:

• plans for our Day of Action in Westminster
• how we’re building momentum in the media and online
• ways to mobilise public support behind our funding asks
• what to expect over the coming weeks, and what support and resources are available

If you couldn’t join us live, or would like to revisit the discussion, you can now watch the webinar recording.

We’ll also be continuing the conversation in the Hospice Communicators Network on Teams, where we’ll share campaign comms ideas, examples and updates linked to the activity discussed in the session.

Working with hospices which have had to make cuts to staffing or service is a key part of this campaign. If your hospice is in this position and you would like work with us, please email our policy team.

On Tuesday 17 March, the Scottish Parliament voted 69-57 against the passing of the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill. This was a significantly wider margin than any predictions ahead of the vote. The original Stage 1 vote was 70-56 in favour but many MSPs who voted in favour said at the time that they wished the matter to be explored but reserved the right to vote against at Stage 3.

During the debate palliative care and the importance of hospices were mentioned a significant number of time, but the overall focus of the debate was more on individual autonomy versus appropriate levels of safeguarding. The official record of the debate is available on the Scottish Parliament website, as is a recording of the debate.

Liam McArthur MSP has ruled out that he would re-introduce assisted dying legislation in the next Parliament, however it would be open to any MSP to bring forward a similar bill.

Read out public statement on the outcome.