Garden House announces formal consultation amid escalating national hospice funding crisis
Hertfordshire based hospice, Garden House Hospice Care, has today announced that it faces the most serious financial challenge in its history, reflecting the deepening national crisis in hospice funding across the UK.
Despite tireless fundraising, local generosity, and ongoing dialogue with NHS partners and the government, the Hospice faces a significant funding shortfall that threatens the sustainability of its services beyond April 2026.
In recent weeks, Garden House Hospice Care appealed to the public to help bridge a £750,000 funding gap this year - rising to £1.1 million next year. To date, £133,033 has been raised by supporters who responded to the call.
Lisa Hunt, CEO of Garden House Hospice Care, said:
“We are deeply grateful for the generosity and belief shown by our community. But despite this incredible support, it isn’t enough. Today, we face the most serious challenge in our Hospice’s history.”
The Hospice currently receives 29% of its funding from the NHS for commissioned services - meaning that 71% must be raised through charitable donations. However, like many charities, Garden House Hospice Care has seen a decline in giving this year, alongside escalating operational costs including energy, insurance, and fair pay for its dedicated staff.
Following months of discussions, the NHS has confirmed that it will maintain current funding levels next year, with a potential 2-3% uplift in line with national guidance - the equivalent of around £45,000 against a £1.1 million shortfall.
Lisa Hunt continued:
“We fully appreciate that the NHS is under immense pressure, and we are grateful that funding levels have been maintained with a potential minor increase to support in funding NHS core commissioned services.
“We continue to work closely with our NHS partners to support the patients of today and the patient of the future.
“Sadly, the funding gap we face leaves us with no choice but to act. Implementing a plan we never wanted to use is the only way to protect hospice care for future generations.”
As a result, the Hospice is now entering a formal 30-day consultation on services, which may lead to more than 20 redundancies. This process will enable the organisation to review every area of its operation to ensure resources are aligned to core patient needs and sustainable funding levels.
During this consultation, all services will remain open and unchanged, and the Hospice is committed to supporting patients, families, and colleagues through this uncertain time.
A growing national crisis
The challenges faced by Garden House Hospice Care are echoed across the country.
Two-thirds of hospices reported a funding shortfall last year, and 40% are being forced to cut services in 2025 - a figure expected to rise.
Lisa Hunt warned that this is not just a financial issue:
“The silence from national decision-makers is deafening. This is not just a funding crisis - it is a care crisis.
“Hospices are an essential part of the healthcare system, allowing people to live and die with dignity, surrounded by love and expert care. Without sustainable funding, that safety net is collapsing.
“The health and social care system is under immense amounts of pressure, through no fault of their own and it’s gut wrenching. The commissioners and NHS can only act with funds available which the government provides. The narrative around a ‘broken NHS’ is not fair - our friends and colleagues in the system are highly skilled experts who work tirelessly - they too face into cuts and declining funding against rising demand.
“Hospice care should not be left until last to be considered. My fear is that any government action will come too late for the hospice sector and many others will be impacted by service cuts or even worse, full closure.
“I share the public’s view that no one should endure long waits on trolleys in A&E. I have deep empathy and frustration for those who can’t access a GP, who face repeated surgery delays and endless cancellations. But I must be clear: we are not in competition with those challenges. An elective operation can be rescheduled. A death cannot.
“The government must wake up and see the stark reality of this situation - not just for Garden House Hospice Care, our staff, volunteers and services users but for all hospices.”
Garden House Hospice Care provides free, specialist end-of-life care for people with life-limiting illnesses across North Hertfordshire, Stevenage, and parts of Central Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire, serving a population of over 500,000. It costs £8.5 million annually to run the Hospice, the equivalent of £16,609 every day, or £11.53 every minute.
Despite having already cut over £1 million in costs, including reducing inpatient beds from 12 to 8 and scaling back community services, the Hospice must now remove a further £1.1 million from non-NHS funded areas by 2026 to remain viable.
Toby Porter, CEO of Hospice UK said:
“To hear of yet another hospice having to consider reducing services is devastating, especially when Garden House Hospice have already had to close beds and make service cuts recently. The demand for hospice care is increasing, yet our data shows 2 in 5 hospices are planning to make cuts this year.
“Hospice services are shrinking right when they should be expanding to meet rising demand. This cannot continue, we need a long-term solution to hospice funding to ensure dying people get the care they need.”
Protecting care for the future
Lisa Hunt said:
“Our holistic care model - encompassing medical, nursing, therapy, bereavement and spiritual support - is irreplaceable.
“We are taking action now because if we don’t, we risk losing the very thing our community depends on.
“We will continue fighting for our patients, for our staff, and for the right of everyone in our community to receive dignified, compassionate care at the end of life. Structures may change, but our commitment to care will not.”
The Hospice’s Crisis Appeal remains live and continues to be vital to sustaining services.
How the community can help
Garden House Hospice Care is asking for continued community support to help protect its essential services for the people who will need them tomorrow.
Supporters can:
- Donate to the Crisis Appeal
- Set up a regular gift to provide sustainable, predictable income
- Fundraise or volunteer to help keep care local
- Write to local MPs and decision-makers to champion fair hospice funding.
“An elective operation can be rescheduled,” Lisa Hunt concluded. “A death cannot. We cannot allow end-of-life care to become a casualty of the funding crisis as a result of poor government oversight. Every person deserves dignity, compassion, and choice at the end of life - and that’s what we’re fighting to protect.”