Hospice in the Weald

What Hospice in the Weald does

Hospice in the Weald is a UK-registered charity (No. 280276) founded in 1980, providing free palliative and end-of-life care to adults and children across Kent and East Sussex. The organisation operates two inpatient facilities — the main hospice in Pembury (Tunbridge Wells) and the cottage hospice in Five Ashes — alongside community outreach services, Living Well day programmes, hospice-at-home nursing, bereavement counselling, chaplaincy and spiritual care, and a dedicated Children's and Young People's Service for children from 28 days old. All clinical services are provided at no charge to patients and families, with care accessed via self-referral, healthcare professional referral, or direct contact through a 24/7 Help Hub.

The organisation's revenue model is entirely donation-dependent, targeting an annual fundraising requirement of over £8–9 million to cover operational costs. Income is diversified across community donations, fundraising events (Hospice Run, Moonlight Walk, Open Gardens), a weekly lottery at £2 per entry, legacy giving through Gifts in Wills, corporate partnerships, and a substantial charity retail network of 28 outlets — including 21 charity shops, 2 toy shops, 3 superstores, and 2 furniture shops — selling second-hand goods across Kent and East Sussex. The hospice also operates an online shop and a Memory Orchard remembrance product.

Operational delivery is supported by 101–250 paid employees and over 1,000 volunteers, with clinical leadership including Consultants in Palliative Medicine, a Consultant Nurse (Queen's Nurse), and specialist paediatric staff. The organisation is regulated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and registered with the Fundraising Regulator, holds GDPR and safeguarding compliance certifications, and is governed by a Board of Trustees chaired by Gary Withers with CEO Nick Farthing. Technology infrastructure is a non-proprietary palliative care service delivery platform with health data integration via the Kent and Medway Care Record (KMCR) partnership.

Name

Hospice in the Weald

Legal name

Hospice in the Weald

Website

https://hospiceintheweald.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1980

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Hospice in the Weald is a UK-registered charity providing free palliative and end-of-life hospice care to adults and children across Kent and East Sussex, funded by donations, a network of 28 charity shops, lottery, legacies, and community fundraising events.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Hospice & Palliative Care Services

NAICS

Assisted Living Facilities for the Elderly (623312)

SIC

Services-Nursing & Personal Care Facilities (8050)

akta.pro primary industry

Inpatient Hospice (General Inpatient Care) (HLADAHAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Palliative Care, Hospice & Serious Illness Support (BPAGACAK), Bereavement, Grief & Family Support Services (Hospice-Linked) (HLAFAEAO), Bereavement & Grief Support Services (Hospice-Affiliated/Independent) (HLADAHAL)

Keywords

• Hospice care
• Palliative care
• End-of-life care
• Charity retail
• Bereavement support

Headquarters

HQ city

Tunbridge Wells

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices30 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: The hospice needs to raise over £8-9 million annually through donations, fundraising events (Hospice Run, Moonlight Walk), corporate partnerships, and community fundraising activities.
2. Charity Retail: Network of 28 retail outlets including 21 charity shops, 2 toy shops, 3 superstores, and 2 furniture shops across Kent and East Sussex generating revenue through second-hand goods sales.
3. Weekly Lottery: Weekly lottery programme at £2 per week participation, providing recurring donations from supporters.
4. Legacies and Gifts in Wills: Legacy giving programme where supporters leave gifts in their wills to support the hospice's ongoing work.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Hospice in the Weald provides free palliative and end-of-life hospice care to adults and children across Kent and East Sussex, including inpatient care at two sites (Pembury and Five Ashes), community outreach nursing, living well day services, bereavement counselling, and chaplaincy support. The charity sustains operations through a network of 28 retail shops, weekly lottery, donations, legacies, and fundraising events, raising over £8-9 million annually.

Product overview

Hospice in the Weald operates as a hospice care provider offering a unified portfolio of services centered on free palliative and end-of-life care for adults and children across Kent and East Sussex. The core clinical offerings include In-Patient Care at Pembury and Five Ashes locations, Living Well day services, Hospice Outreach for home-based care, and specialized Counselling and Chaplaincy services. The Children's and Young People's Service provides dedicated hospice care for children from 28 days old. Complementing clinical services, the organization runs a network of 21 charity shops, toy shops, superstores, and furniture shops; operates a weekly lottery; organizes fundraising events including the annual Hospice Run and Moonlight Walk; and provides a 24/7 Help Hub with educational resources. The organization is registered as a charity (No. 280276) and relies on voluntary donations and fundraising to supplement NHS funding.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• In-Patient Care Residential hospice care provided at two inpatient ward locations in Pembury (main hospice) and Five Ashes (cottage hospice), serving adults with terminal illness requiring overnight stays and 24/7 nursing support.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over £8 million raised annually from community support
• +1 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Medi Tech TrustminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Medi Tech Trust to give old beds new lease of life - equipment repurposing initiative
• Kent and Medway Care Record (KMCR)coreTechnology or IntegrationHealth data sharing partnership through the Kent and Medway Care Record system enabling continuity of care with NHS and local system partners

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Hospice UK: National membership and advocacy body for UK hospices; not a direct care provider but the closest sector peer for benchmarking, funding policy, and standards.
• Cancer Research UK: Major UK cancer charity combining clinical research with public fundraising and retail; shares the same donor pool and legacy-giving techniques but is a research rather than care-delivery peer.
• British Heart Foundation: Large UK health charity with an extensive charity retail chain and community fundraising programmes; relevant comparator for retail income optimisation and volunteer operations, though mission differs.

Direct peers

• St Catherine's Hospice (Sussex): Sussex-based hospice charity offering inpatient, day, community, and bereavement care, with charity shops and community fundraising; strong functional and geographic-adjacent comparability.
• Trinity Hospice (London): London-based hospice charity running inpatient beds, community palliative care, and bereavement services with a comparable diversified fundraising model.
• Marie Curie: UK-wide hospice charity providing palliative and end-of-life care including hospice beds, community nursing, and a network of charity shops — closely overlapping service mix and retail income model.
• ellenor hospice: Hospice charity operating across Kent (and Gravesend/West Kent), delivering hospice at home, inpatient, and bereavement services with a similar volunteer- and donation-driven model.
• Sue Ryder: National hospice and neurological care charity with inpatient hospices, community services, and a large chain of charity shops — overlapping palliative-care offering and retail-funding engine.
• Pilgrims Hospices: East Kent-based hospice charity providing inpatient and community palliative care; directly comparable in service model, catchment overlap, and community-led fundraising approach.

Emerging players

• Demelza Hospice Care for Children: Kent/South East London paediatric hospice charity offering respite, end-of-life, and bereavement care for children — partial overlap via the CYP service line that Hospice in the Weald is now building.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/hospiceweald
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCexample
• Facebookfacebook.com/hospiceintheweald
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hospice-in-the-weald
• Instagraminstagram.com/hospiceintheweald

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles30 records

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 Hospice in the Weald