Sector news and updates

The Prime Minister visited his local hospice, Wigan & Leigh, on Saturday 22 August, meeting patients and reading over 100 messages from local people asking for fair funding for hospices.

In a piece in the Leigh Journal featuring an interview from the meeting, Burnham stated that “the state is not doing enough to fund hospices - saying the system needs to be put on a ‘firmer footing’.”

Burnham also said he did not believe changes to the law around assisted dying should come before the hospice movement had been properly secured.

He said: “I don’t think, personally, we can go and change the law in that very, very delicate and difficult space before we’ve properly secured the hospice movement across the UK...and that’s the order in which I put those things.”

Additionally, he pledged to donate 15% of his MP salary this month to Wigan & Leigh Hospice.

This meeting was hugely encouraging in his support for the sector. A big thank you to Wigan & Leigh Hospice for coordinating it.

Get the word out across the sector by sharing Wigan & Leigh Hospice and our own social content covering the event.

You have until 17:00 on Monday 7 September 2026 to enter the Hospice UK Awards - have you made a nomination yet?

This is your chance to celebrate the innovative work taking place at your hospice and the people who make it happen.

With two new awards this year, our ten award categories recognise the stand-out individuals and teams whose impactful work will inspire other hospices and palliative care organisations.

If you have you worked with someone this year whose contribution, dedication and passion has made a real difference to your hospice and the people your care for, nominate them for a Hospice UK Award in 2026.

The winners will be presented at our National Conference in Liverpool on 16 - 18 November. You can now view the first programme online to find out what else is on at this year's event.

Carers UK is asking unpaid carers across the UK to take part in its State of Caring Survey 2026. The survey is open until 9 August and explores the impact of caring on areas including health, finances, employment and wellbeing. 

The findings help shape Carers UK's research, policy and campaigning work, while also informing government, health and social care services, charities and carers' organisations. More than 10,500 carers took part in last year's survey, providing evidence that has contributed to discussions on social care reform, carers' employment rights and financial support.

You may wish to share the survey with unpaid carers you support, helping ensure carers' voices are heard at a time when key decisions are being made about the future of health and social care services.

Gardens are extraordinary places for wildlife - whether they're located at a hospice, or simply at your own home.

As one of our biggest supporters, we're spreading the word for National Garden Scheme's Big British Garden Survey this summer, and asking Hospice UK supporters to help.

The survey's findings will improve national understanding of how gardens support biodiversity in the UK. 

Whether you have a garden of any size, an allotment, a balcony or a courtyard - you can get involved and contribute your own findings to the data. 

And hopefully, you'll find enjoyment in observing wildlife in your garden and contributing to environmental research.

NHS England has announced a review of Band 5 nursing roles as part of the Fairer Deal for Nurses programme.

To help us understand any implications for the hospice sector, we would be grateful if hospices could share:

• any reviews, evaluations or workforce planning activity completed to date relating to Band 5 nursing roles
• relevant job descriptions for Band 5 nursing posts

Having a clearer idea of your current practice will help us represent the sector more effectively. 

Please send responses to our clinical team by Friday 4 September.

As part of the 10 Year Health Plan, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) announced the creation of a Neighbourhood Health Service, that will provide accessible coordinated care within a local area. This will be achieved through an integrated healthcare system bringing together a variety of different services. Since then, DHSC has announced 43 pilot sites across England that are designing and trailing this service now, along with running consultations around the sites and contracting.

We'd like to understand further how hospices are getting involved, so we can work with DHSC to ensure that nationally they are thinking about hospices and palliative and end of life care as part of the neighbourhood programme.

Please do get in touch with the policy team if:

• you are part of a group taking part in a pilot and delivering a Neighbourhood Health Service
• you are in a pilot area and while aware of the work ongoing have not been asked to be part of the pilot
• you were not aware you are in a pilot area and don't know what work is ongoing around Neighbourhood Health Services

The pilot sites can all be found here.

The Children’s Commissioner for England has launched The Big Future – a national survey inviting children and young people aged 0–18 to share their experiences, concerns and hopes for the future. The findings will help shape national policy and ensure children’s voices are heard in decision making.

The survey is open to children in England until 23 October, and can be completed by children themselves or by parents and carers on their behalf.

By sharing the survey through your services, you can help ensure that the voices of children receiving hospice care – and their siblings – are included, and that future policy reflects their needs and realities. This may also be of interest to adult hospices who are supporting families through wellbeing services.

A stakeholder toolkit with ready-made resources is available to help you promote the survey across your networks.

We are aware that Corin Dalby's petition on hospice funding is attracting support and appears to be benefiting from promotion through Change.org's platform.

While we are not actively supporting or promoting the petition, and would not encourage members to do so, any increased awareness of hospice funding challenges can be helpful in drawing further attention to the issues facing the sector.

Our focus remains on advancing our fair funding campaign and its four-point plan for securing sustainable, long-term funding for hospice care.

For further information or advice, please email our policy team.

There are a few places remaining on our 14 month, fully-funded, Fundraising apprenticeship. The deadline to apply by Monday 31 August.

Open to people who work in for hospices in England, this course is delivered by Corndel and developed with the Chartered Institute of Fundraising (CIoF).

Apply today to deepen your skills and learn how to better plan, manage and deliver successful campaigns of all shapes and sizes.

Hospice UK staff who have previously taken part in these fundraising courses have said: 

"These courses are well worth it. Excellent quality training... Highly recommend."

"[We have] found it a very comprehensive fundraising training course and really useful, as you can tailor it to your particular fundraising area."

You can find further course the details are on our website. If you have any questions, please contact Corndel.

The Scottish Partnership for Palliative Care (SPCC) Annual Conference has opened their call for posters.

Posters will be displayed at the SPCC annual conference which takes place on 28 October at the John McIntyre Conference Centre in Edinburgh.

To express interest in this opportunity, complete a poster proposal form by 16 September.