Rotherham Hospice shortlisted for 14 national awards including charity of the year
We have some brilliant news to share: Rotherham Hospice has been shortlisted across two major national charity sector award schemes — the Charity Times Awards and the Third Sector Awards.
Both awards are highly respected across the charity sector, recognising excellence, leadership, innovation and best practice. Awards aren’t why we do what we do. Our work is about patients, families, carers and our community. But being recognised in this way is a powerful reminder that the care, compassion and commitment happening across Rotherham Hospice is being noticed nationally.
It’s also a reflection of the whole hospice. These shortlistings recognise different areas of work, but none of them happen in isolation. Every team, volunteer, trustee, supporter and partner contributes to the story of Rotherham Hospice — and this is a moment to celebrate that together.
Charity Times Awards 2026
We’ve been shortlisted in eight categories.
Fundraising Team of the Year Our Income Generation Team has been shortlisted for a year of exceptional fundraising and community support. In 2025/26, total funds raised reached £4.94m, fundraising income grew by 31.2%, and retail and café income grew by 93.3%. The team also welcomed thousands of new supporters, event participants, lottery players and legacy pledgers. Their work is about far more than raising money — it helps keep beds open, nurses on the road, counselling available, and hospice care free for local people.
Charity with the Best Social Media Presence Our social media has been shortlisted for the way it’s helped change how people see and understand hospice care. Over the year, our public reach grew from 2.55m to 23.5m, helping more people see that hospice care isn’t only about death, but about dignity, family, comfort, wishes, support and living as well as possible.
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Award Our EDI work has been shortlisted for the progress made in making hospice care feel more accessible, relevant and welcoming to everyone in Rotherham. This includes our EDI Strategy, stronger governance and Board oversight, cultural competency training, community engagement, our Ramadan Experience Day, interfaith work, and Care Across Cultures on Link FM and YouTube. This matters because people are more likely to trust hospice care when they feel it’s genuinely meant for them.
Finance Team of the Year Our Finance and Resources Team has been shortlisted for providing the financial discipline and stewardship needed during a year of growth, investment and challenge. In 2025/26, the hospice grew income to £9.56m, managed expenditure of £10.19m, supported £822k of capital investment, and ended the year in a much better than planned financial position.
Property Innovation Award This shortlisting recognises the way we’re thinking differently about our buildings, spaces and estate — including investment in all 14 Inpatient Unit rooms, improvements to patient, family, kitchen and café areas, the development of our retail and café sites, and future plans including Wishes House, improved access, parking, lifts and therapeutic outdoor spaces. In hospice care, property is never just property. It’s part of dignity, comfort, family experience and community connection.
Charity Collaboration of the Year We’ve been shortlisted alongside Weston Park Cancer Charity for Charity Collaboration of the Year. This recognises the importance of partnership working, and the difference that can be made when charities work together around shared purpose and community need. Collaboration is central to our strategy and to the future of hospice care, because the best support for patients and families rarely comes from one organisation working alone.
Supporting Leader of the Year: Jayne Lowe Jayne Lowe, our Director of Care, has been shortlisted for Supporting Leader of the Year. Jayne’s leadership has helped support our first ever overall CQC Outstanding rating, the development of our future clinical model, the continued strength of our Inpatient Unit and Hospice at Home services, and the growth of wider support including bereavement, counselling, therapy and children and young people’s support. Her leadership is visible in the care people receive every day.
Charity Chair of the Year: Bruce Warner Bruce Warner has been shortlisted for Charity Chair of the Year, recognising his calm, thoughtful and deeply committed leadership as Chair of Trustees. Bruce has supported the hospice through significant change, including our first independent governance review, governance restructuring, stronger Board assurance, and our CQC Outstanding journey.
Third Sector Awards
Alongside the Charity Times shortlists, we’ve also been shortlisted in six categories at the Third Sector Awards, headline sponsored by ansvar.
Medium Charity of the Year This shortlisting recognises what has been one of the strongest years in our history. In 2025/26, we achieved our first ever overall CQC Outstanding rating, supported 360 inpatient admissions, completed 12,320 Hospice at Home visits, recorded 38,102 calls, and achieved exceptional patient and family feedback, with 97.1% rating their overall experience as excellent or very good.
Financial or Procurement Excellence of the Year Our Finance and Resources Team has also been shortlisted here, recognising careful financial stewardship during a complex year, including income growth, strong budget management, capital investment, and clear evidence of the value hospice care provides to the wider health and care system.
Frontline Team of the Year: Hospice at Home Our Hospice at Home Team has been shortlisted for the exceptional care they provide to people in the place they call home, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In 2025/26, the team completed 12,320 visits, recorded 38,102 calls, provided more than 1,718 hours of telephone support, and helped avoid 1,363 hospital admissions and 1,428 GP appointments. Behind every number is a person supported, a family reassured, and a wish respected.
Fundraising Team of the Year Our Income Generation Team has also been shortlisted here, recognising not only the £4.94m raised and generated during the year, but the way the team has grown community support, events, retail, cafés, regular giving, lottery, legacies and supporter engagement — including moments like Winter Wonder Garden, which began as a small idea and became a major community event.
Volunteer Team of the Year Rotherham Hospice volunteers have been shortlisted for Volunteer Team of the Year. In 2025/26, 322 volunteers supported the hospice, including 153 new volunteers, together giving more than 52,328 hours — an estimated value of £638,932. The latest volunteer survey showed just how positive the experience is, with 97% enjoying volunteering, 97% feeling appreciated, and 100% enjoying volunteering with people at the hospice.
Charity Chair of the Year: Bruce Warner Bruce has also been shortlisted for Charity Chair of the Year at the Third Sector Awards — a lovely reflection of the role he plays in supporting strong, thoughtful and values-led governance across the hospice.
A huge thank you
To be shortlisted across fourteen national award categories between the Charity Times Awards and the Third Sector Awards is a huge moment for Rotherham Hospice.
It shows the breadth of work happening across our organisation: care, fundraising, finance, governance, volunteering, social media, inclusion, property, collaboration, leadership and frontline service delivery.
Most importantly, it reflects the people behind the work. Thank you to every member of staff, every volunteer, every trustee, every supporter and every partner who has helped make this possible.
Whatever happens at the awards ceremonies, this is already something we should all feel incredibly proud of.
