We are fighting for the patients of today and the patients of tomorrow. Your help can keep us caring.
This is not just a funding crisis - it’s a care crisis.
Nearly 40 years ago, Garden House Hospice Care was founded by our community to meet a vital need: expert palliative and end of life care for local people. Since then, we’ve supported thousands of patients and families - caring for and empowering them to live well so they can spend precious time together, and, when the moment comes, ensure comfort and dignity in their final days.
Four decades later, the need has never been greater, but our future has never been more uncertain.
We are facing a funding shortfall of £1.178 million this year. We have already taken action to reduce what we can control, cutting £1,035,000 in expenditure. But with National Insurance costs up by over £200,000, utility and food bills doubling, medication costs soaring with no NHS funding for medicines, and a decline in charitable income we are still left with a £750,000 gap before the end of the financial year. Next year, the shortfall is projected to grow to £1.1 million and could rise again after the Chancellor’s budget in November. We cannot run in this way.
The impact is already being felt. We have been forced to reduce the number of beds on our Inpatient Unit from 12 to 8, scale back a third of our community services, and delay essential property repairs and maintenance. We now have a waiting list of people in urgent need of care who we cannot guarantee to support.
Our 10-year strategy promises that every person matters, but today people are being turned away. It is not right, and it must stop.
Under the current financial model, hospices like ours receive only around 29% of their funding from the NHS. The remaining 71% relies on charitable giving - a model that no longer meets the growing demand.
North Hertfordshire has one of the highest proportions of people on the end of life register, yet we cannot plan for the future on donations we might generate. Without urgent action, more people will miss out on the dignity, comfort and expert care they deserve.
Our CEO, Lisa Hunt, shares the reality we face:
“Doing what we do is the greatest privilege. Garden House isn’t about bricks and mortar; it’s about the stories and the journeys we have had the honour to share. Each family that’s joined us has left their own legacy. Seeing the impact our wonderful team can have at the most challenging times is what motivates us every single day. And it’s that compassion that burns deep within us to protect the future.
“The sad truth is that we are not meeting the demand now. When you have a life-limiting diagnosis, fear is inevitable - fear of pain, of loneliness, of dying without support. Hospices are experts in easing those fears, anticipating needs, creating calm and ensuring people are not left to suffer alone. If we are not here, that expertise disappears. People could die in pain, or without the comfort and dignity they deserve in their final moments. That is what we are facing if the future funding model doesn’t change.
“Our story is every Hospice’s story. To be sustainable we must have reserves to fall back on during hard times. This Hospice has weathered many storms over the past decade. Year after year, we’ve dipped into our savings as income fell and costs rose. Now, the well is dry.
“This is why our appeal is so urgent. We have no alternative. We cannot survive another rainy day. We must boost our income just to break even.
“We so desperately want to be there, and we want to make sure that the people who are yet to need us can rely on us and don’t have to worry. All I can ask of our community is that they hear and understand the severity of this message. We need you now more than ever. Please donate if you can and continue to stand by us, so we can continue to stand by you.”
Garden House Hospice Care is not only vital for patients and families, it supports the wider healthcare system. We have the expertise to relieve NHS pressure and play our part in the solution, to move care from hospital into the community.
Pressures on the NHS mean people in crisis are attending A&E more often, and hospitals face record waiting lists and delays. Our award-winning Frailty Service has already freed up the equivalent of 3,387 NHS bed days in a single year, equating to 846 elective operations. Early intervention from our specialist team, including physiotherapists, occupational therapists, and psychological support, has helped many patients regain independence and avoid unnecessary hospital stays.
Referrals across all of our services rose by 46.5% last year, and we estimate that up to 5,000 people in our community could benefit from our care but aren’t receiving it.
In the aging population we live in, Hospices should be growing, not shrinking.
This is not just another appeal. This is THE appeal. To break even this year we must raise £750,000. To safeguard next year and beyond, we need long-term, sustainable funding.
Our fight is not just for Garden House Hospice Care. It is for every patient and family in North Hertfordshire who deserves dignity, comfort support and a choice for the final phase and days of life. It is in memory of those we have had the privilege to care for and a promise to those who will need us in the future. We will be there when you need us, but we cannot do this alone.
We need our whole community to come together.
Whether you can give £10 or £10,000, fundraise in our name, take part in an event or rally your workplace, school, or group - every effort makes a difference. Together, we can plug the gap today and secure the future of your local hospice for the patients of tomorrow.
Donate to our Crisis Appeal
£49 could fund a counselling session for a patient or family member
£165 could cover the cost of the medication we provide our patients on the Inpatient Unit, per day
£902 could pay for a full day of activities from our Rehab and Wellbeing team, such as a one-to-one physiotherapy appointment
£8 could pay for clean bedding and towels for all our patients, for one day
£32 could cover the cost of the refreshments at a Wellbeing Hub for a month
£76 could fund a visit to a patient’s home by our community team (this could range from 30 minutes to 1½ hours)
Here’s how you can help
- Individuals: make a donation of any amount meaningful to you
- Businesses: support us through partnership, sponsorship, or staff fundraising
- Trusts & Major Donors: provide transformational gifts to protect local hospice care
- Schools & Colleges: get creative and fundraise together
- Community Groups: organise events or collections in aid of the hospice
- Everyone: spread the word and share our appeal - you can download and print our posters below - championing the importance of hospice care for all.
Thank you for standing with us.
Get in touch
If you would like to get in touch directly with ways you can support, please call us on 01462 679540 or email fundraising@ghhospicecare.org.uk.
For media enquiries, email marketing@ghhospicecare.org.uk.
How do we raise our income?
It costs us £8.5 million a year to provide our services. We receive 29% commissioned funding from the NHS - leaving 71% charitable income we must raise each year. That is £16,609.39 every day, £11.53 every minute. We greatly rely on the hard work and dedication of our fundraising and trading teams and the support of the community from local businesses, groups and individuals to help fund our work. We also rely on the support of our fantastic volunteers to help us deliver our services.
For every £1 donated, 89p is spent funding our patient services. This covers salaries, travel costs for our community teams, medical supplies, energy bills, catering costs and raising awareness of our services. 11p is used to raise the next £1.
Our services
Garden House Hospice Care provides free specialist palliative care for patients, families and carers facing life limiting illnesses from across North Hertfordshire, Stevenage and towns and villages in Central Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire, serving a population of over 500,000 people.
Working with our medical team of highly experienced doctors and nurses, we have specialists in a wide range of roles including complementary physiotherapy, bereavement, occupational therapy, complementary therapy and spiritual care.
Read more about our services at the Hospice and out in the community.
Why is demand for our services on the rise?
The ever-growing aging population presents a significant increase in demand for hospice care. People are living for longer with multiple health conditions, where symptoms of frailty are more prevalent.
East and North Hertfordshire has the highest proportion of end of life and frailty patients, accounting for 4% of the population.
Hospice care also delivers the best patient outcomes for this group. Our services enable more people to stay at home at the end of life, aligning care with patient wishes while reducing pressure on NHS hospitals.
Without hospice support, many more people will die in busy hospital wards, often in corridors or A&E, far from their families and the dignity they deserve.
What cuts have we taken so far?
We have already taken action to reduce what we can control, cutting £1,035,000 in expenditure.
Due to lack of funding, we have been forced to reduce the number of beds on our Inpatient Unit from 12 to 8, scale back a third of our community services, and delay essential property repairs and maintenance. We now have a waiting list of people in urgent need of care who we cannot guarantee to support.
What are we doing about the financial crisis and lack of sustainable funding?
We are doing everything we can within our power to resolve the recurring issue of unsustainable funding for hospices. We have formally raised concerns with commissioners on behalf of our patients and families. We are lobbying MPs and spreading our message far and wide. Our fundraising and trading teams are working around the clock to raise vital charitable income to fund our services.
This Crisis Appeal is our final resort - it’s our only other option. Your support now can help us protect the future of our care.
Separation of the Trading Company
Times remain challenging for charity retail, with high rents and shifts in shopper and donor behaviours. We’ve also seen a decline in the quality of donations as more people turn to selling items on platforms like Vinted rather than donating.
In April 2025, we took the important step of formally separating our Trading Company from Garden House Hospice Care, giving it the independence to explore new ventures beyond retail. This flexibility allows us to innovate, diversify income, and ultimately raise more money to fund vital patient care.
As part of this journey, we refurbished four of our flagship shops. The updates were essential, addressing urgent health and safety requirements, improving accessibility for all, and creating a welcoming environment that many customers enjoy. Importantly, these refurbishments were paid for entirely from the Trading Company’s budget - not from charitable donations - ensuring that funds raised for patient care remain protected.
This trading investment strengthens the future of our retail operations so they can continue to generate vital income, safeguarding hospice care for the people who will need us tomorrow.