Hospice Funding: 5 Myths Busted
There are a lot of myths and misconceptions about hospices and hospice care, whether that be who can receive hospice care, the services we offer, or who pays for hospices. Let’s explore what’s a myth, and what’s a truth about hospice funding!
Myth: Hospices are funded by the NHS
Some hospices are run as part of NHS, but many aren’t. Rotherham Hospice is a charity, and not an NHS hospice, although we work closely with NHS partners and meet the same high standards of care.
Rotherham Hospice costs £6 million a year to run, with around half our funding coming from an independent regulator of health and social care.
Even with this funding, we still need to fundraise an incredible £3 million a year to cover basic needs such as professional nurses and energy costs.
It is only thanks to our incredible community of supporters that we can bridge this gap and keep providing vital end-of-life care to the people of Rotherham. To see how you can help, please visit the Fundraising page on our website.
Myth: Hospices are immune from the rising cost of living
Just like everyone else, Rotherham Hospice’s costs have risen in recent times. While we do what we can to save energy, the Hospice’s electricity bill alone has more than doubled in the past year, going up by 104%.
Although Rotherham Hospice is a charity, we don’t get free electricity or other utilities. And unlike businesses, we can’t pass on our costs to customers, and rely on communities to fundraise for our services.
This is why, more than ever, support from our local community is so important.
Myth: Hospices are run by volunteers
We are incredibly grateful to our wonderful volunteers and trustees for giving their time and skills to Rotherham Hospice – they do an amazing job!
However, providing consistent, good quality care means investing in professional staff.
There are areas of palliative care and Hospice management that need paid expertise to ensure Rotherham Hospice can keep supporting our local community.
Myth: I can’t make a difference
Anything you can give makes a massive difference.
If everyone in Rotherham gave just £5, we would have raised almost half of our fundraising goal for the year.
If you aren’t in a position to donate money, you could support the Hospice through word of mouth, by sharing our posts on social media, volunteering your time at events.
You could even take on a challenge and raise money by asking your friends and family to sponsor you. It all helps towards meeting our £3 million yearly goal!
Myth: Putting money in a bucket is the only way to raise money
Putting money in a Rotherham Hospice collection bucket is an important way you can help the Hospice… but it isn’t the only way!
You can support the Hospice in many ways including:
Why your support matters
Rotherham Hospice cares for families experiencing an end-of-life illness, both physically and emotionally. As a charity, Rotherham Hospice needs to raise £3 million each year to fund vital end-of-life services and we can only do it thanks to our amazing supporters like you.





