What The Hospice of St Francis does

The Hospice of St Francis is a registered UK charity (No. 280825) founded in 1979 by Pam Macpherson and headquartered in Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, delivering free palliative and end-of-life care to patients with life-limiting conditions across Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire. Core clinical operations comprise an 18-bed inpatient unit, community-based hospice care delivered in patients' homes, and The Spring Centre, an outpatient hub offering physiotherapy, occupational therapy, complementary therapy, creative therapy, and support for children and young people. Adjunct services include specialist support for pulmonary fibrosis and heart failure, bereavement counselling for families and children, and the paid Respite for Good service run through the trading subsidiary. The organisation also operates 11 charity retail shops across the two counties, online sales via eBay, AbeBooks, Discogs, Vinted, and Shop for Good, and the Hospice Lottery.

The hospice funds a £6,000,000 annual operating requirement through a diversified mix: approximately 70% from community supporters (individual donations, regular giving, legacies, corporate partnerships, community events, retail, and lottery), approximately 20% (≈£1.2M) from NHS statutory funding, and the balance from commercial activities routed through Hospice of St Francis Trading Ltd (venue hire, Respite for Good, shop operations). GTM is community-led and relationship-driven, with patients accessing care via self-referral or NHS/healthcare professional referral, and supporter acquisition relying on local fundraising events, charity shops, corporate partnerships, lottery, and legacy giving programmes. The technology stack is non-proprietary (Google Analytics, Better Impact volunteer management, Hapi CMS, Much Loved tribute pages) with no disclosed AI/ML capabilities; the 1,300+ volunteer base across approximately 70 roles is the operational backbone alongside 51–100 paid employees. Education and Learning programmes, including the European Certificate in Essential Palliative Care, extend the organisation's regional footprint into professional training for NHS staff, GPs, ambulance clinicians, and care home workers.

Name

The Hospice of St Francis

Legal name

The Hospice of St Francis

Website

https://stfrancis.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1979

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

The Hospice of St Francis is a registered UK charity founded in 1979 in Berkhamsted, delivering free palliative and end-of-life care, therapies, and bereavement support to patients and families across Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire, funded primarily through community donations, NHS grants, and 11 charity shops.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Hospice and Palliative Care

NAICS

Home Health Care Services (62161), Ambulatory Health Care Services (621)

SIC

Services-Nursing & Personal Care Facilities (8050), Services-Home Health Care Services (8082)

akta.pro primary industry

Palliative Care, Hospice & Serious Illness Support (BPAGACAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Inpatient Hospice (General Inpatient Care) (HLADAHAB), Community-Based Palliative Care (Home-Based Non-Hospice) (HLADAHAH), Hospice & Palliative Respite Care (HSABAGAG), Non-Hospice Serious-Illness / Community-Based Palliative Care (In-Home) (HSABAFAF)

Keywords

• Palliative care services
• Hospice inpatient care
• End-of-life care
• Bereavement support services
• Community healthcare support

Headquarters

HQ city

Berkhamsted

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices11 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: Primary revenue stream. Individual donations (one-off, regular monthly gifts, major gifts), community fundraising events (marathons, golf days, skydives, concerts), corporate partnerships, charity lottery, and legacy giving (gifts in wills). Approximately 70% of income comes from the community of supporters.
2. Charity Retail Shops: Eleven charity shops across Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire selling second-hand goods, books, furniture, specialist items. Also online sales via eBay, AbeBooks, Discogs, Vinted, and Shop for Good. Revenue from donated goods sales.
3. NHS Statutory Funding: NHS provides approximately 20% of annual funding (approximately £1.2M of the £6M annual requirement). This is a contracted public healthcare funding stream.
4. Venue Hire (Venue for Good): Commercial hire of hospice spaces (The Yurt, Meeting Rooms, Spring Room, Therapy Rooms) to the public and businesses for workshops, meetings, celebrations, and wellbeing events. Profits go to the hospice via the trading subsidiary.
5. Respite for Good (Paid Care Service): A paid-for short-term respite care service offered by the hospice's trading subsidiary. Provides commercial revenue separate from charitable care.
6. Hospice Lottery: Weekly lottery program offering subscribers the chance to win cash prizes while generating recurring donations for the hospice.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels12 records

Core offering

The Hospice of St Francis is a registered charity providing free palliative and end-of-life care through an 18-bed inpatient unit in Berkhamsted, community-based home care, outpatient therapies at The Spring Centre, bereavement support, and condition-specific programs for pulmonary fibrosis and heart failure. The hospice supplements care delivery with commercial activities via its trading subsidiary: venue hire (Venue for Good), a paid short-term respite service (Respite for Good), 11 charity shops, an online retail presence, and a weekly lottery.

Product overview

The Hospice of St Francis operates as a charitable hospice providing palliative and end-of-life care services. Its core offerings center on inpatient hospice care (18-bed unit), community-based hospice services, and The Spring Centre for outpatient therapies including physiotherapy, occupational therapy, and complementary therapy. The organization supports patients with pulmonary fibrosis, heart failure, and other life-limiting conditions, alongside bereavement services for families. Beyond direct patient care, the portfolio includes Venue for Good (commercial venue hire), a network of charity retail shops, Tribute Pages (memorial donation pages via Much Loved), the Hospice Lottery, and Education & Learning programmes for healthcare professionals. Respite for Good provides paid-for short-term respite care. Approximately 20% of funding comes from NHS, with the organization needing £6 million annually to sustain operations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Spring Centre: Therapy and rehabilitation centre offering physiotherapy, occupational therapy, complementary therapy, creative therapy, and support for children
• Respite for Good
• Chapter Two
• Returned to Glory

Products and services

• Hospice Inpatient Care Round-the-clock palliative care, symptom management, and end-of-life care delivered in an 18-bed inpatient unit in Berkhamsted for patients with life-limiting or terminal conditions. Free at point of use; accessed via self-referral or professional (GP, hospital, community nurse) referral.
• Community Hospice Care Home-based palliative care bringing nursing support, symptom control, and family support to patients in their own residences across Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire. Free at point of use.
• The Spring Centre Outpatient therapies hub offering physiotherapy, occupational therapy, complementary therapy, creative therapy, spiritual support, social care support, and children's support to enhance quality of life for people with life-limiting conditions.
• Bereavement Support Services Counselling and bereavement support services for families, friends, and carers, including support groups, dedicated children's bereavement services, and Father's Day support content.
• Specialist Support Services (Pulmonary Fibrosis, Heart Failure, Wellbeing Hub) Specialist programs for people with progressive long-term conditions such as pulmonary fibrosis and heart failure, plus a wellbeing hub providing self-management and condition-specific support groups.
• Respite for Good Paid short-term respite care service offering temporary relief for family carers while patients receive care in a supportive environment. Pricing available on enquiry.
• Venue for Good Hire of hospice spaces — The Yurt, meeting rooms, the Spring Room, and therapy rooms — for workshops, meetings, celebrations, office away-days, and wellbeing events. Quote-based pricing.
• Education and Learning Programmes Structured professional training including the European Certificate in Essential Palliative Care (ECEPC), the Palliative Care Development Programme, communication skills, bereavement support training, and clinical practice placements for NHS staff, GPs, ambulance clinicians, care home staff, and students. Over 100 courses referenced.
• Charity Retail Shops Donated-goods retail network selling second-hand goods, books, furniture, and specialist pre-loved items through physical shops and online channels.
• Tribute Pages Online memorial pages enabling families to share photos, stories, and memories of loved ones while collecting donations in their memory, powered by Much Loved and integrated with JustGiving.
• Hospice Lottery Weekly lottery subscription programme that delivers recurring donations to the hospice and gives participants the chance to win cash prizes.
• Memory Tree Bereavement and in-memory giving initiative enabling supporters to dedicate a leaf on the Memory Tree in honour or memory of loved ones, paired with donations to the hospice.

Quantifiable outcome

• 2,466 people cared for and supported last year
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC)coreOthersThe hospice submits Gift Aid claims to HMRC on donations made by supporters to charity shops and the hospice. HMRC processes these claims and refunds tax to the hospice. This is a mandatory statutory compliance relationship for all UK charities claiming Gift Aid.
• Direct Debit Burea (payment processor)supportingOthersThird-party direct debit bureau processes regular donations from committed givers on behalf of the hospice. Subject to data protection contracts and UK GDPR compliance.
• ISO-certified mailing housessupportingOthersThird-party mailing houses used for data cleansing, large mail distributions, and printing/posting fundraising appeals. ISO certified for quality and data security standards. Subject to UK GDPR data protection contracts.
• Data bureauxsupportingOthersThird-party data bureaux used to maintain supporter database quality, including removal of records of deceased individuals and address verification using the Post Office's National Change of Address database.
• Much LovedsupportingTechnology or IntegrationThe hospice has partnered with Much Loved, the UK's leading tribute website service, to offer free online tribute pages for supporters to remember loved ones and collect donations in memory.
• Better ImpactsupportingTechnology or IntegrationBetter Impact provides volunteer management software used by the hospice for volunteer applications, onboarding, and management. The volunteer application process links directly to Better Impact's platform.
• Google AnalyticssupportingTechnology or IntegrationGoogle Analytics is used on the hospice website to track visitor trends, page visits, geographic distribution of visitors, and site performance metrics.
• Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, LinkedIn, TikTok (social platforms)supportingGTM or Marketing PartnerSocial media platforms used for organic and paid marketing, community engagement, fundraising promotion, and remarketing. The hospice uses remarketing pixels and web beacons on these platforms.
• NHS / My Care RecordcoreOthersThe hospice is part of My Care Record, an NHS approach to improving care by joining up health and care information. Health and care professionals can view patient records from the hospice when needed for care. This is a critical care coordination partnership.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves1 record

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Marie Curie: UK charity providing hospice care at home, inpatient hospice services, and a dedicated nursing service for terminal illness. Directly comparable service portfolio (inpatient, community, nursing) and similar donation/NHS funding mix; operates nationally with stronger brand recognition.
• Rennie Grove Hospice Care: UK hospice charity operating in Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire and surrounding counties - direct geographic overlap with St Francis. Provides hospice at home nursing, inpatient care and family support via donation-funded model.
• ellenor: Kent-based hospice charity delivering hospice at home, inpatient palliative care, and family support. Comparable mid-sized regional hospice with similar donation-driven funding and breadth of community services.
• Peace Hospice Care: Hertfordshire-based hospice charity offering inpatient, day services and community palliative care. Operates in the same catchment area, raising direct competition for local donations, legacies and NHS grant funding.
• Sue Ryder: National UK charity operating hospices, palliative care services, and bereavement support across multiple regions. Highly comparable mission, funding model (donations + NHS grants + retail), and service mix to The Hospice of St Francis, but operates at significantly larger scale.
• St Christopher's Hospice: Pioneering UK hospice in London providing inpatient, community, and outpatient palliative care plus extensive education programmes. Closely comparable service model including the focus on professional learning and community-based care delivery.
• Garden House Hospice Care: Hertfordshire-based hospice charity providing inpatient palliative care, community services and family support. Directly comparable in scale, geography, and funding model; competing for the same donor base.
• Dorothy House Hospice Care: UK hospice charity providing inpatient, community and outpatient palliative care plus education. Comparable mid-sized regional hospice with similar donation/NHS income mix and breadth of services.
• Farleigh Hospice: Mid-sized UK hospice charity providing inpatient and community palliative care, bereavement support and hospice-at-home nursing. Closely comparable scale and operating model to St Francis.

Broad incumbents

• Macmillan Cancer Support: UK-wide cancer charity providing palliative care information, financial support, and nursing services. While not a direct hospice operator at the same local scale, it competes for cancer-related donations and complements/substitutes for hospice services in the same patient population.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/hospiceofstfrancis
• Facebookfacebook.com/thehospiceofstfrancis
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hospice-of-st-francis-berkhamsted
• Instagraminstagram.com/hospicestfrancis
• TikToktiktok.com/@thehospiceofstfrancis
• Xx.com/hospicstfrancis

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Hospice of St Francis