Rowcroft recognised as South West’s leading hospice
Rowcroft Hospice in Torquay has become the first hospice in the South West to be given Beacon status, joining just nine other charities in the 200-strong Beacon network with the honour.
Founded in 1982 on the 'English Rivera', Rowcroft Hospice has been a dedicated source of care for people with life-limiting illness in the region for over 25 years. Today, the hospice is one of the biggest providers of hospice care in the South West, supporting more than 1,000 patients and their families each year, in the hospice itself, the day centre and the community.
Its work, and the efforts of its management team, led by CEO Giles Charnaud, to transform the hospice into a successful commercial entity, have caught the attention of Beacon South West and resulted in the former home of the Wills Family being awarded Beacon status.
Rowcroft Hospice offers a broad spectrum of specialist palliative care services for people suffering from life-limiting illnesses and treatment is delivered by a team of dedicated specialist staff, free of charge, together with a small army of volunteers.
Like the majority of hospices, Rowcroft Hospice is largely reliant upon voluntary income, particularly legacies to augment the limited funding it receives from the Government. In recent years, Giles and his colleagues have worked hard to diversify its revenue through a variety of business-related activities, such as its hugely popular network of charity shops.
Explains Giles: "Because we don't charge for our services, this has meant we have had to run the hospice on sound business principles if it is to continue to thrive. As a result, we have evolved in our thinking and with it developed a more sophsticated income stream."
Part of the additional funding raised by Rowcroft Hospice is set to be spent on a new £10m development including a purpose designed inpatient unit. Scheduled to begin in summer 2008, the new unit will be an annex to the existing building. When completed in September 2009, work will begin on a major upgrade of the existing inpatient centre in the main house to create an integrated out-patients facility and family support areas.
Giles, a chartered accountant with over 15 years experience in the health sector, is the first to admit that hospices can be isolated from the business community and is keen to use Beacon South West as a vehicle to introduce new ways of thinking to Rowcroft. "Although we have come a long way in terms of our business structure, Beacon South West will certainly help educate ourselves further."
He is also looking forward to networking with his peers, and the opportunity at the regular Beacon boardrooms, which are safe havens for directors of Beacon companies to discuss business issues, to talk about sensitive subjects such as investing surplus capital.
He is also hoping that the hospice's new-found Beacon status will enable Rowcroft to take a more active role in the Devon business community. Concludes Giles: "We employ over 200 people at the hospice, which makes us a sizeable contributor to the local economy. It is important that the hospice continues to be recognised for the vital service that it provides to the community. Hopefully, now we are a Beacon South West member, we will be able to shout about our achievements far more."
