# **ST CHRISTOPHER’S HOSPICE ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS** 2024-25
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|ABOUT ST CHRISTOPHER’S|3|
|---|---|
|WELCOME TO THE REPORT|4|
|OUR VISION, VALUES AND AMBITIONS|5|
|OUR YEAR IN SUMMARY 2024-25|6|
|WHAT WE DO WITH YOUR MONEY|7|
|WHAT PEOPLE SAY ABOUT US|8|
|PROGRESS AGAINST OUR AMBITIONS|9|
|STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE||
|AND MANAGEMENT|29|
|FINANCIAL REVIEW|34|
|INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE||
|MEMBERS OF ST CHRISTOPHER’S HOSPICE|37|
|FINANCIAL STATEMENTS|40|
|LOOKING TO THE FUTURE|58|
|THANK YOU TO ALL OUR SUPPORTERS|60|
|MEET THE TEAM|62|
**“You matter because you are you and you matter until the last moment of your life”**
DAME CICELY SAUNDERS Founder of St Christopher’s and the modern hospice movement
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## ABOUT **ST CHRISTOPHER’S**
**Caroline, one of over 1,200 amazing volunteers**
## **At St Christopher’s Hospice (referred to as ‘St Christopher’s’ in this document), we have a vision of a world in which all dying people, and those close to them, have access to care and support, whenever and wherever they need it.**
St Christopher’s believes that people matter. Every person who comes into contact with the hospice, whatever their background or circumstance, will receive the care and support they need. After all, each person is unique.
For some, that may mean being cared for in their own home, surrounded by family and things that are important to them. For others, it may mean being able to talk openly about their illness with people who are going through a similar experience. It may even be as simple as being able to listen to their favourite music whilst eating breakfast during a stay at the hospice.
Whatever the wish, we do our best to make it happen. That’s because we aim to help people live well until they die and support those affected by the death of someone close.
Operating from two locations, one in Sydenham and one in Orpington, our efforts are focused on meeting the goals of people with a life-shortening condition and supporting their families and carers wherever we can. Our reach spans across a diverse population of approximately 1.6 million people within the five London boroughs of Bromley, Croydon, Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark.
Last year, we provided care and support for 6,864 people across our five boroughs. In this report you’ll hear some of those people’s stories and what we did to help them through these challenging times.
We also offer more than you might expect – below you will see examples of the different professionals who provide care and support for people in our community, to give you a flavour of the breadth of support available.
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ART AND MUSIC PHARMACISTS
THERAPISTS
PHYSICIAN
CHAPLAINS ASSISTANTS
COMPLEMENTARY PHYSIOTHERAPISTS
THERAPISTS
PSYCHIATRISTS
DIETICIANS
PSYCHOTHERAPISTS
DOCTORS WHAT
MATTERS SOCIAL
NURSES TO YOU? WORKERS
OCCUPATIONAL SPEECH AND
THERAPISTS LANGUAGE
THERAPISTS
PAIN SPECIALISTS
WELFARE
PARAMEDICS OFFICERS
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## **WELCOME** TO THE REPORT
## **Welcome to the Annual Report and Accounts of St Christopher’s Hospice for 2024-25.**
In total, last year, we provided end of life care and support to 6,864 patients, families and carers, which is an increase of 6% on the year before.
While we’re proud of the number of people we care for and support, one of our five strategic ambitions is tackling inequalities. In practice, that means working tirelessly and effectively to remove the barriers that are preventing people from accessing care.
I am delighted to report that, as we enter the final year of our three-year strategy, that we are making good progress in pursuit of this ambition. The establishment of our Inequalities Committee has seen us identify and deliver this work through the lens of three priority groups – those from global majority populations, resource poor populations and older people at risk of poor dying experiences, while recognising that our local population varies from borough to borough and within each borough.
You can read more about our work in tackling inequalities on pages 9 to 14.
Public debate of the precarious state of hospice funding and the passage of Terminally Ill Adults (Assisted Dying) Bill through the House of Commons have placed end of life care under the media spotlight over the last year.
I am pleased to say that, in pursuit of another one of our five strategic ambitions – to tackle ethical issues – we have not shied away from the debate. On the contrary, we submitted evidence and recommendations for the Terminally Ill Adults (Assisted Dying) Bill at the Committee stage. In addition to this, we also submitted evidence to the recently established Palliative and End of Life Care Commission and to the NHS for their 10-year plan and received more than 900 pieces of high-profile media coverage in the process. We also shared a briefing paper with MPs summarising the main themes and findings of 50 conversations we conducted with members of our local community about their views on assisted dying.
With only 34% of our own funding coming from the NHS in 2024-25, and growing patient need, we continue to rely on our community for us to create a sustainable business model. £17.7m (60%) of our income in 202425 came from people in our community through a combination of our charity shops, fundraising activities or gifts to us in Wills.
We were pleased therefore that, on 19 December, Health Secretary Wes Streeting announced £100m of much needed funding for adult hospices. However, a long-term
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Last year we supported more than 6,800 people
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funding solution is needed for the hospice sector, and we continue to work with Hospice UK on this.
At the heart of another of our strategic ambitions, equipping the future workforce, is ensuring we reflect the communities we serve. One highlight was receiving the Investors in Diversity Silver accreditation from the National Centre for Diversity in late 2024. This was a significant achievement and we now aim to achieve gold.
It is also important to us that we provide learning opportunities for both our own workforce and the wider sector. This report highlights a number of programmes (mainly delivered by St Christopher’s Centre for Awareness and Response to End of life (CARE)) where we are helping to upskill the sector both nationally and internationally, as part of our ambition to fulfil a national and global leadership role.
This year, we also began refurbishing our wards, a significant capital project, to enhance the experience for those staying with us. We look forward to completing the project in 2025-26 and welcoming people to our new wards.
Finally, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone – staff, volunteers, trustees and supporters – for helping us achieve everything you’ll read about in this report and for committing to be a part of our ongoing commitment to remove barriers to accessing quality end of life care. We could not have done it without you.
JAN NOBLE Director of Quality and Innovation Interim Chief Executive (October 2024 to June 2025)
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## OUR **VISION VALUES** , AND **AMBITIONS**
## OUR VISION
**A world in which all dying people and those close to them have access to equitable care and support when and wherever they need it.**
## OUR VALUES
**Pioneering Of and for the Empowering and One team and bold community compassionate working together**
**Expert Stronger through partnerships**
## OUR STRATEGIC AMBITIONS
**Tackle Equip the Fulfil a national Create a Tackle ethical inequalities future and global sustainable issues workforce leadership role business model**
**We launched our new strategic ambitions in 2023. Throughout this report you’ll read about our progress against these ambitions in 2024-25, this being the second year of our three-year strategy.**
**St Christopher’s supports people to live well – our rehabilitation gyms are a key part of that**
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## **OUR YEAR IN SUMMARY** 2024-25
**We provided care and support for 6,864 people**
**We provided care and support for 4,776 patients**
**We supported 364 children through our Candle bereavement service**
**We supported 760 people with in-person or face-to-face adult bereavement sessions**
**We supported 1,724 carers**
**We had 664 inpatient admissions**
**We carried out 25,459 home visits**
**We provided 8,729 outpatient appointments**
**CARE reached 76 countries worldwide**
**98% of learners would recommend the learning to their colleagues**
**More than 6,000 professionals attended CARE events**
**We provided over 220 learning events**
**697 people attended seven CARE conferences**
**Through our**
**learners we reached more than 40% of UK hospices – 87 in total**
**We delivered 960 outreach**
**programmes including peer groups, compassionate chats and workshops in the community, resulting in over 8,000 attendances**
**24,315 supporters donated money to us**
**1,960 walkers took part in our 2024 Fun Walk and raised more than £200,000**
**640,000 customers supported us in our shops**
**1.4 million items were sold in our shops**
**1,225 volunteers supported us, of which 43% had done so for more than three years**
**The cost to run all St Christopher’s services was £25m**
**We need to raise over £19.4m every single year to provide our services**
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## WHAT WE DO WITH **YOUR MONEY Hearts with names hanging in the Memory Tree on the route of our Fun Walk**
**It is thanks to the incredible generosity of our supporters that we are here. Your kindness means we are able to provide care and support for people in south east London and beyond when they need us most.**
## WHERE OUR MONEY COMES FROM
An incredible £17.7m (60%) of our income is from people in our community, donated through fundraising activities, leaving gifts in Wills or buying pre-loved items in our shops. We are so very grateful for the money you donate, and we are careful to spend and invest it wisely in ways that will best serve the people who need our support.
We are also very thankful for the money we have received from the NHS, which comprised £10.0m (34%) of our total income.
Our remaining income comprised £1.7m (6%) that we generated from education, fees and investments, and other income.
The total income of £29.4m raised this year enabled us to continue providing care to people who live in the boroughs we serve – Bromley, Croydon, Lewisham, Lambeth and Southwark – as well as shaping care for people across the globe through education, research and innovation.
## WHERE OUR MONEY GOES
It cost £31.5m to run St Christopher’s in 2024-25. Here’s a breakdown of how we spent the money you gave us.
Our full financial review starts on page 34.
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Education, fees and Investments
other income £1.0m £0.8m
Donations to NHS
fund our income
hospice £10.0m
services
£5.8m Income
£29.4M
Shops £5.4m Gifts in Wills £6.4m
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Education, research Bereavement services £1.0m
and policy £1.4m
Community
Raising action
voluntary £0.8m
income
£2.2m Commu-
Expenditure nity care
£31.5M £12.8m
Shops £4.3m Inpatient care £9.0m
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## WHAT PEOPLE **SAY ABOUT US**
## **At St Christopher’s, we’re committed to continually improving and developing the support and services we offer, ensuring they meet the changing and diverse needs of the communities we serve.**
To make sure we’re doing this effectively, we regularly measure and report on the impact we have, both to the health and wellbeing of people receiving our support and their experience of our care.
In 2024-25, we also received 986 compliments from patients, carers or other family members who received support from our services, compared with 845 in 2023-24.
Overall, people were satisfied with the care and support received from St Christopher’s, with 94% of people sharing they were extremely likely or likely to recommend us.
- **“As individuals and as a team you were brilliant. Made unbearable, bearable. Don’t know how we would have coped without you.”**
- **“Everybody was so helpful, friendly and supportive at the time of my husband’s death. Lovely place. Peaceful, private ”**
- **and such lovely caring staff.**
**“My brother has learning difficulties and the team at St Christopher’s went above and beyond. There is help and support whenever needed, whether you are the patient or relative.”**
- **“St Christopher’s team supported my husband in the later stages of dementia.**
- **Allowed him to be cared for at home right to his death.”**
- **“Thank you so much, I would love it, my biggest problem is loneliness so I’d not only love it, I need it. That is like medicine to me.”** Community Action after a compassionate neighbour match
**Lauren, one of our physiotherapists in the Rehabilitation team**
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## **PROGRESS** AGAINST OUR AMBITIONS
**In 2023 we set out a new strategy based around five key ambitions. We’re continuing to make good progress in pursuit of all of them. The next few pages of the report capture some of the positive steps we’ve taken over the last year, illustrated by people with lived experience of the hospice.**
## **Tackle inequalities**
## SUPPORT FOR PATIENTS, FAMILIES AND CARERS
At St Christopher’s, we support people in their own homes as well as in our hospice, and engage with people to understand what matters most to them so that we can help them live well until they die.
In 2024-25, we cared for 6,864 patients. On our wards, 664 people stayed with us, which represents a small increase on the number of people who stayed with us in 2023-24. The vast majority of people we cared for were in their own homes. We completed 25,459 home visits and our teams also carried out 8,729 outpatient appointments. The number of home visits, which continues to grow yearon-year, represents the fully holistic care and support we provide, and the depth and breadth of support we offer across our boroughs.
## **Danni and Andy’s story**
**When water-lover Danni Mason suggested going for a swim in a lake after being admitted to St Christopher’s inpatient unit, she was not sure it would be possible.**
**and Wellbeing Consultant Lead, while Specialised Physiotherapist Simone Clark and Ward Manager Emily Alcock were on the sidelines on standby.**
**The couple were so grateful for the dip that they ordered a custom-made cake for the team at St Christopher’s. The cake read “I can’t feel my feet, hands or face, but I f******* love this.”**
**“Thank you to absolutely everyone from St Christopher’s who helped to get me to the lake on Tuesday. It was literally a dream come true,” Danni said.**
**Danni’s ambition to swim in the lake was in response to a question we ask all our patients – “What matters to you?”**
**“It’s so different to hospital,” Andy said. “It’s such a calm place. After the swim, Danni had a shower and then was given a massage, it was like a spa day!”**
**“The team are taking care of me too,” he added. “I’ve had a massage too.”**
**Before the swim, Andy had been taking Danni down to the garden in the hospice and putting her feet in the stream to get her as close to water and nature as possible.**
**Helena Talbot-Rice said: “We were so delighted to be able to support Danni and Andy to do what mattered most to them. We couldn’t have done it without the amazing team at Beckenham Place Park Lake who opened up especially for us. This is why asking ‘What matters to you?’ is so important – it improves outcomes for patients and those closest to them.”**
**But after an almighty effort by different teams across the hospice, as well as support from Beckenham Place Park Lake, Danni, 45, and husband Andy Ratcliffe, 44, were able to take a dip in the water. The couple, from Sydenham, were regular swimmers at Beckenham and were amazed the team could pull it off.**
**“It’s a treasured place for us,” Andy said. “We have so many memories from there, Christmas and New Year’s Day swims, five-minute dips in February. It was such a profound experience, it was pure joy.”**
**“There aren’t enough superlatives to describe how amazing it was,” Danni said.**
**“Water is Danni’s happy place,” added Andy. “Water and nature, just floating, and so the team here were absolutely incredible. Until it happened, I don’t think we had any expectation that it would actually be possible.”**
**Danni and Andy were joined in the water by Katie Grace, Clinical Team Lead, and Helena Talbot-Rice, Rehabilitation**
**Andy and Danni**
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The BRIT School continues to be an important source of joy
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## STRENGTHENING STRATEGIC ACTION
To help formalise the positive work the hospice has done in recent years to break down inequalities, and to make sure we do much more, we established an Inequalities Committee in 2024-25, with representation from across the hospice, as part of our ongoing organisational commitment to tackle inequalities.
To launch the work of the Inequalities Committee we carried out a data review to help us understand the gaps in provision and where and on whom we should focus our work to improve access to and knowledge about our services.
The review identified under-representation in specific population groups that we need to address and where we need to support local people who are most at risk of health inequalities at the end of life. We are prioritising three population groups: global majority populations, resourcepoor populations and older people at risk of poor dying experiences.
## UNDERSTANDING OUR WORK AND ITS IMPACT
We also conducted a review of the hospice’s existing initiatives to tackle inequalities.
By March 2025, we had a directory of 34 active projects incorporating: 12 that involved global majority communities, incorporating staff training and improving representation; nine that supported people with limited economic
resources, such as targeted outreach and bereavement services; and five that aimed to improve care for older adults, including research and care home support.
The directory is being updated quarterly to inform planning and measure progress.
## UNDERSTANDING LOCAL POPULATION NEEDS AND WANTS
The Community Action team at St Christopher’s works with local charities, schools, faith groups and members of the public to support people living with inequalities to improve experiences of end of life.
In the past year the team has worked with people sitting within each priority area, including: refugees and asylum seekers; people seeking support with housing and homelessness; people with learning disabilities; and people within global majority groups.
The team has also led the development of a new Lived Experience Strategy, which will enhance our ability to work with people who have experience of end of life matters and our service provision to help shape and develop the work we do.
Importantly, the work of the team allows us to collaborate with local people and groups to explore what local people need and want. It also maximises its impact in our local area by training and supporting local groups to address nonmedical needs.
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## **Jaheem and Sam’s story**
**A year after his first bereavement therapy session at St Christopher’s and 18 months since the sudden death of his baby sister, Jahniyah, Jaheem Pascal and his mother Sam Rodney credit his bereavement worker for his emotional wellbeing.**
**From the little boy who at the first session said he didn’t want to talk about his sister, to the apparently confident seven-year-old at ease addressing the emotions of this most sensitive subject, it is quite a transformation. Jaheem is clear that the Candle Bereavement programme of five 50-minute sessions, plus three additional check-in meetings with Karen Chapman, made a huge difference.**
**“When I first knew I was coming to talk about Jahniyah, I felt a bit nervous because I felt Jahniyah dying was like a secret,” he recalls. “But it isn’t any more. I just love being with Karen. She is very good – a thousand out of 10! It feels like I should be here because it’s a nice place and it always helps me. I like being here because it has all the right things I need.”**
**Jaheem demonstrated his comfort speaking about Jahniyah, saying: “I loved my sister. She was always by my side, always followed me and always wanted to come where I was going. She was just so cute.”**
**Mum, Sam, is equally grateful for the St Christopher’s Candle service. “Coming here was very refreshing,” she adds. “It was what we needed. I felt they were here for him and he knew it was his time to be vulnerable to be himself, to go off with Karen to have his session in private, in a safe space, knowing Mummy was just downstairs.**
**“I think what’s been amazing is Candle has been in our life through the process of losing his only sister and then the emotions of Mummy being pregnant again. It’s been an amazing support he’s had through the different parts of his journey.”**
**Sam proudly describes how Jaheem is often the one to mention his little sister: “I think it’s really important they live on in our lives because you can’t just push those feelings and emotions to the side. You can’t pretend that little person didn’t wear those shoes that are still by the door.**
**“It’s a way for us to keep her alive in our hearts and Jaheem does that so well in our family. We’ll be doing something, and he’ll say, ‘Jahniyah would do such and such’. He does such a good job of keeping her alive in our family. I love it. He looks after me and he’s a special boy who is able to share his experience.”**
**Jaheem and Sam**
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Sasha, our new hospice doulla
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## CROYDON DEATH DOULA PROJECT
In September 2024, St Christopher’s started a pilot death doula programme in Croydon. We recruited a specialist death doula to support people living in the borough who are reaching the end of life to help reduce some of the existing health inequalities and to link up the clinical and emotional support they receive. We have since started work with our Volunteering team to enhance our offer using volunteers who are retired palliative care nurses. Through this new service we have provided care and support to 59 people.
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## CROYDON DEATH LITERACY NETWORK
We’ve continued to deliver free community training and workshops on grief, loss and end-of-life conversations to members of the public in Croydon, as well as community groups working with people who are disadvantaged. This network has deepened public confidence in discussing experiences and matters related to the end of life and improved local understanding of available support.
## PEER SUPPORT GROUPS
We have established peer support groups for people experiencing end of life, including carers and people who are bereaved, through Coach4Care and Bereavement Help Points. These groups offer a way for people to explore their feelings and experiences with others who have a similar experience, and often help them normalise their perspectives and find strategies for dealing with them.
We have been able to deliver 960 outreach programmes which have resulted in more than 8,000 attendances. We have also delivered more than 200 hours of training for volunteers, students, carers, charity staff, community organisations and faith groups.
## CROYDON HEART FAILURE PROJECT
In the context of heart failure, the role of palliative care can be and often is misunderstood by patients, carers and healthcare professionals. This leads to an increased risk for people living with heart failure to have unmanaged high symptom burden, over medicalised and less supportive care, and a higher risk of dying in hospital.
We’ve run a successful collaborative research project with Croydon and Bromley teams to improve care pathways for patients with heart failure.
Over one year we supported 185 people and 76% of them died where they wanted to. Other outcomes included reduced hospital admissions, better symptom management, and a new outpatient model shaped by patient feedback.
## CONNECTIONS FRAILTY PROJECT
Care homes are a space where increasing numbers of older people are living and dying with frailty, but the need for palliative care is under-recognised and under-researched in this setting.
**Art therapy is one of the services offered by the Psychological and Spiritual Care team**
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In 2024-25, we teamed up with Age UK and key Integrated Care Board representatives to deliver targeted support to frail older adults living in six of the care homes in one of our boroughs which broadly did not specialise in offering dementia care, focusing on developing a better understanding of their palliative needs.
More than 70 residents participated and among the key insights were that the residents were keen to engage in discussions about ‘What Matters Most’, and few had received bereavement support. Also, care home staff had little opportunity to engage in training. It was also apparent that these older people wanted to discuss their end of life wishes but were not often provided with the opportunity to do so. We used these insights to inform our developing frailty strategy and shared the findings nationally via a report to the Hospice UK conference in November 2024.
## WORK WITH BRIXTON PRISON
In January 2025, we began work with Brixton Prison to understand their offer to prisoners who may be approaching the end of life. Working closely with the prison healthcare provider, the St Christopher’s nurse has identified some objectives of this project to improve end of life care in prisons, including the creation of a palliative care pathway, the introduction of bereavement support and supporting staff training for both the care provider and prison staff.
## LEARNING DISABILITIES
With one in 50 people in the UK living with a learning disability, many of whom will have end of life and palliative care needs, St Christopher’s became the first hospice to appoint a Clinical Nurse Specialist (Learning Disabilities) in February 2023. In the two years since Phoebe Mooney was appointed to the role, she has, working closely with colleagues in the hospice and professionals in the community, increased the number of people we care for with a learning disability from 30 to 80 a year. In October 2025, the hospice is hosting its first-ever conference addressing this issue: Advancing Palliative Care for Individuals with Learning Disabilities.
## **Valerie and Tim’s story**
**Valerie, 82, cared for Tim, 47, who had learning difficulties, all his life. Her total trust and confidence in St Christopher’s weren’t derived from long stays or frequent visits to the Sydenham site. Rather, they flowed from a total belief in the expertise and understanding of the nurses and a very real sense that, even if she and Tim didn’t access their help all the time, it was there when they did need it.**
**Phoebe, Tim and Harriet**
**“We had such good feelings about St Christopher’s even though we didn’t go there much. We knew it was there any time and when you know you have support there when you need it, it enables you to carry on. I didn’t value them by how many times I contacted them, but by being there and being so good.”**
**A big factor in Valerie and Tim’s sense of wellbeing and ease with the care and support they received from St Christopher’s came from the expert care provided by Clinical Nurse Specialist (Learning Disabilities) Phoebe Mooney.**
**Since her first visit to see Tim and Valerie in August 2023, patient, carer and nurse developed a very strong bond, Valerie says.“The nurses we had before were amazing, but with Phoebe being a learning disability nurse it meant I didn’t have to explain anything. She understood why he wouldn’t open his eyes for several minutes for example and was happy to use a stethoscope to check his breathing every visit because Tim thought that’s what nurses should do. And after all those years of explaining, it was great having someone who just got it.**
**“He always loved talking to people, but Phoebe and Tim were so close. I just totally trusted her on everything and from my point of view I think she understood what it’s like being the parent of someone with a learning disability and that was very important to me. I just couldn’t imagine her not being there really because I trusted her completely.”**
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## HOSPITAL AT HOME
To further extend access to our care and support, the last year has witnessed the growth of our Hospital at Home programme – formerly known as Virtual Wards. It provides intensive care over a 10 day period with the aim of avoiding unnecessary and wanted hospital admissions. The initiatives in Bromley, and Lambeth and Southwark continued to develop in 2024-25 and saw senior St Christopher’s nurses work closely with a local GP to contact patients either in-person or via phone for up to seven days. Lambeth and Southwark Hospital at Home had a steady increase from none to 10 beds from May 2024 to November 2024 as we staffed and grew the offer. We are now offering the full 10 beds each weekday. Meanwhile, in Bromley we are commissioned to provide five beds and respond to varying numbers of referrals.
## **Equip the future workforce**
St Christopher’s Centre for Awareness and Response to End of life (CARE) is our state-of-the-art community and learning centre. Through professional learning and community training we aim to support people to explore living with dying and bereavement.
Over the course of 2024–25, St Christopher’s CARE has provided more than 220 learning events for the local, national and global workforce to enhance their knowledge of palliative and end of life care. Over 6,000 professionals attended events which included conferences, skills workshops, formal courses, peer-led communities of learning, webinars, talks and demonstrations.
## INNOVATING TO MAKE LEARNING MORE ACCESSIBLE
One of the standout recent successes has been the introduction of on-demand modules, which enable learners to study independently online. Since October 2024, four on-demand palliative care modules have attracted over 360 sign-ups. Other online developments include the move to hybrid conferences which has enabled a much wider reach and access for attendees. In 2024-25, virtual attendees for events such as our Heart Failure, Future of Ageing and MND conferences all exceeded the numbers of in-person tickets sold. This, in turn, increased revenue, helping St Christopher’s to continue to support more people.
Another notable addition has been the virtual reality scenarios in the Meaningful Conversations course to support ongoing practice in handling challenging
discussions. Through the power of generative AI, we have been able to use virtual humans to simulate real-world scenarios. This allows learners to practice at their own pace, receive personalised feedback, and build their skills over time, without the risks and ethical concerns associated with holding conversations with real patients or clients.
## SUPPORTIVE LEARNING FROM QUALIFICATION ONWARDS
Early-career nurses often feel unprepared for the emotional and clinical complexities of end of life care. In response, St Christopher’s and The Community Hospice, in partnership with the South East London Integrated Care Board, co-developed a 10-month, evidence-informed programme through the Hospice Education and Learning Partnership (HELP) – the Nurse Development Programme. Designed for Band 5 and 6 nurses across diverse care settings, the programme aims to build essential palliative care knowledge, confidence and resilience.
The programme includes structured learning days, clinical placements, group coaching and reflective practice. Co-designed with local leaders, it reflects real-world service needs and supports long-term career development. The programme welcomed 30 participants and received an impressive 60 applications during 2024-25, highlighting the strong demand for this much-needed initiative.
Early feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, with participants describing the experience as ‘eye-opening’ and ‘transformative’.
This initiative directly supports the ambition of equipping the future workforce by investing in early-career professionals, strengthening their capabilities, and fostering a sustainable, skilled palliative care workforce. It offers a scalable model for workforce development that can be adapted across regions and specialisms.
## DEVISE AND IMPLEMENT A PEOPLE STRATEGY TO SUPPORT STAFF AND VOLUNTEERS
We were delighted to achieve Investors in Diversity Silver accreditation from the National Centre for Diversity in late 2024. Our work for this award commenced in 2022, with St Christopher’s undertaking an initial staff survey to provide baseline data and develop an action plan. This plan, supported by the St Christopher’s FREDIE (Fairness, Respect, Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Engagement) Group, focused on the accreditation standards relating to culture, strategy, wellbeing, recruitment, reward, performance management and communications.
Whilst receiving the accreditation was a significant achievement for St Christopher’s, it is a waypoint on our
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The children’s play area in our Garden Café at Sydenham
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journey as we strive to have an inclusive and diverse workforce that reflects the communities we serve. The assessment also highlighted additional actions that we can take to improve even further, and these are being taken forward across the organisation.
The year also saw St Christopher’s ask staff for their views via our biennial engagement survey. It was conducted by Birdsong Charity Consulting on behalf of Hospice UK and provides us with vital information and insight from our employees about their experience with us, their roles and our workplace. It was therefore pleasing to see results improving across most of the key indicators of the survey.
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Developing our people is important
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The overall engagement score at St Christopher’s increased from 2022 to 2024, and nine out of 10 employees were proud to work for us. There was also an improvement in staff morale and the belief that the leadership team were committed to making St Christopher’s a great place to work. Notwithstanding this, both this survey and that from Investors In Diversity highlighted areas that can be improved upon and the Executive Team are committed to doing so. This commitment to improvement is underscored by our People Strategy, with a sustained and engaged workforce one of five key outcomes included.
We also sought to improve our sickness absence rates and the support we provide for the management of sickness across the organisation. Overall rates of sickness amongst our staff improved through 2024-25, and we launched a winter wellbeing drive at the start of 2025. This eightweek initiative encouraged staff to focus on their health and wellbeing and included activities such as yoga and Pilates, a team step count competition, financial webinars, wellbeing and resilience workshops, and a number of curated videos and resources on self-care.
Having introduced a new online learning platform in 2023, MyLearning, the benefits of both improved and more engaging content, allied to improved reporting, saw mandatory training levels at our target level of 90% across much of the year. We also introduced new learning for staff around sustainability to support our ambitions to reduce our environmental impact.
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Beth
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## **Beth’s story**
**It was a desire to work more closely with individuals and their families that drew Beth Kwesiga to the job at St Christopher’s, after a number of years working as a social worker in Accident and Emergency and hospital discharge. Five years on, and Beth definitely has no regrets.**
**She adds: “I work here out of passion. Social worker jobs in palliative care are few and far between and I really love my job. Often, it’s very hard for people to know what to ask for because they don’t know what’s on offer. So, we need to spell out the options and then establish what they want to achieve and look at the best ways we can help them to do that. Knowing that person has died having achieved their goal is what success feels like to me.”**
**A recent case illustrates the challenging and emotional nature of Beth’s work. She spent a year supporting a young woman of 27 and as she approached the end of life, she asked Beth for help making a video for her mother. Beth sat in as the St Christopher’s media team filmed the woman recording her message to her mother, before Beth later sat watching it through with her and picking the bits to edit. It was then that the really challenging part came.**
**“When I asked when she’d like me to give the film to her mother, she told me that, having worked with her for a year, I’d know when the time was right! Her mother had said all along she didn’t want anything like this, and sure enough when I phoned her a few weeks after the funeral, she repeated that. When I said that it was**
**what her daughter really wanted, she started to relax and understand. I know that for me I’ve supported the daughter to do something that was important to her.”**
**It’s these kinds of challenges that motivate Beth to come into work every day. “There are always cases that stick with you. Some weekends, if I’m working with someone with whom I’ve built a relationship and they’re approaching the final stages of life, then there’s nothing that will take my mind off it.”**
**That certainly doesn’t dim Beth’s passion for her work though and feedback from patients and families always helps too. “We receive some lovely cards and letters and that really helps to make you feel like you’ve made a difference and gives validation for what you do.”**
## SUPPORTING OUR VALUED VOLUNTEERS
In 2024–25, volunteers have remained at the heart of our organisation, generously giving their time, energy and expertise to help us achieve our goals. With over 1,200 volunteers contributing around 258,752 hours across the hospice this year, their dedication has made a real and lasting difference to those we care for. Whether it’s offering a listening ear, a warm cup of tea, helping at events or sorting donations in our shops – this vital support does not go unnoticed.
This year we’ve expanded our volunteer training programme to help ensure each volunteer feels supported and valued in their role. We’ve also recently refreshed the structure and purpose of our Volunteer Voices group to better support the volunteering experience at St Christopher’s and align with our organisational strategy. The group is now run by volunteers, with a newly elected Chair and Vice Chair, meaning that the group now has greater autonomy and representation, meeting regularly to discuss key issues. We’re also actively recruiting new members to ensure all volunteer roles and communities are represented.
We are deeply grateful for the continued dedication of our volunteers and thank them sincerely for all their support throughout the year.
## **Lesley’s story**
**Turn the clock back a couple of years, and volunteering in the garden at St Christopher’s in Sydenham is probably the last thing Lesley Morris would imagine she’d have been doing, mostly because she’s always hated gardening.**
**That was before the deputy head teacher’s husband, Trevor, died of leukaemia. “When I lost my husband,**
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Lesley
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**it changed everything about me and about our life, everything that holds life together,” Lesley says.**
**Over the months that Trevor spent under the care of St Christopher’s, Lesley says they both developed an enormous connection with the hospice.**
**“They just came into our lives like a wonderful group of guardian angels. They helped us apply for a Blue Badge for the car, for the benefits we were entitled to and while all around us felt like turmoil they were always so kind and calm.”**
**After Trevor’s death, Lesley attended a couple of bereavement group sessions at St Christopher’s and the bereavement coordinator suggested she might like to volunteer. “She said they were looking for people to help in the garden. It was still such an important place for me and I wanted to keep that thread of connection with St Christopher’s. While I do find gardening a chore, I also love being outside, so I said yes.**
**“Fourteen months later I love it. I love being part of the group and love being in the gardens. Everyone has a story to tell and a reason for being there and understands that everyone else is the same, but no one ever actually says, ‘Why are you here?’.**
**“It’s so nice to do something physical outside. You can’t ignore the cycle of life when you’re in nature. By giving me the opportunity to volunteer in its garden, St Christopher’s is continuing to support me on my bereavement journey while also enabling me to feel that close connection with Trevor.”**
**Volunteers, like Judith, provide a warm welcome at St Christopher’s**
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**Events, like our annual MND Conference, create space for professional learning and networking**
## **Fulfil a national and global leadership role** CO-CREATING LEARNING GLOBALLY AND LOCALLY
St Christopher’s Professional Learning offer continues to advance national and global leadership in palliative care through a range of impactful initiatives.
This includes a new Pathfinders Programme to develop the hospice leaders of the future. It also includes Beacons of CARE, which we launched in October 2024 with support from Women in Fellowship.
The Beacons of CARE initiative empowers palliative care leaders in their home countries to co-develop education programmes with St Christopher’s. As of March 2025, six Beacons have been established, in Bangladesh, Brazil, France, Hong Kong, Mexico and Abu Dhabi.
As part of the Global Fellowship in Palliative Care, Professor Heather Richardson MBE led international site visits to Bangladesh and Kerala. In addition, St Christopher’s Professional Learning team delivered online dementia training for Gibraltar Health Authority in April and May 2024 to strengthen knowledge of dementia care provision.
More locally, we commissioned Do Not Attempt Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (DNACPR) training for leading practitioners in Bromley Healthcare. Bromley fed back that the training was “immensely useful and supportive” and that it “will make a significant difference to our patients and to the continuity and quality of care delivered”.
All of these activities reflect St Christopher’s commitment to sharing expertise, building capacity, and shaping the future of end of life care locally, nationally and internationally.
## SUPPORTING AND SHAPING THE PALLIATIVE CARE LEADERS OF THE FUTURE: THE PATHFINDERS PROGRAMME
St Christopher’s recognises that courageous, visionary leadership has been central to the growth of palliative care over the past 50 years and that the next half-century will demand equally bold leadership to navigate rising demand and limited resources. In response, St Christopher’s has launched the new Pathfinders Programme, a seven-month leadership development course for leaders and managers within the hospice and wider palliative care sector. It builds skills in individuals who aspire to shape care, build partnerships and form services that are future-focused.
The programme is hybrid in format, enabling participation from both UK-based and international professionals. It combines leadership theory, real-world insights from experienced leaders, and reflective practice. Participants engage in three-hour sessions, workplace-based projects, and receive coaching and mentoring. A dedicated online community and wellbeing resources further support their development.
With 18 participants in its first cohort, the programme has already demonstrated its national and global appeal and contextual relevance. Feedback confirms its unique value in complementing formal leadership training and helping individuals harness their strengths in diverse settings.
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By nurturing confident, resilient leaders and fostering international collaboration, the Pathfinders Programme exemplifies St Christopher’s ambition to lead nationally and globally. A second cohort, focused on nurse leaders, is planned for late 2025 – further extending its impact across the sector.
## INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION AND RECOGNITION: GLOBAL FELLOWSHIP IN PALLIATIVE CARE
The Global Fellowship in Palliative Care is a six-month, virtual, 40-hour a month training programme designed to cultivate the next generation of palliative care leaders, particularly from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). It is a collaborative, co-designed initiative run with our partners: Institute of Palliative Medicine, Kozhikode (India), Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (Bangladesh) and Sanjeevan (Puducherry, India).
It aims to build leadership beyond the current faculty, ensuring sustainability and scalability, and invites participation from individuals who are actively shaping or planning to establish palliative care services in their regions, thereby fostering local ownership and leadership.
Up to 400 people from a wide range of roles apply for 200 places each year.
In 2024, fellows selected for their strong leadership potential attended a week-long masterclass which provided intensive, in-person mentorship and networking.
We have evaluated the programme over the years and can report that some participants have not only enjoyed the course and its content but have gone on to have real practical impact as a result of learning with the Fellowship. Of note are projects that help establish communityled initiatives to improve end of life, new academic partnerships, new national networks to support nurses, and the generation of policy/guidelines that reflect local needs.
This Fellowship exemplifies a strategic, scalable and globally recognised model for developing palliative care leaders. By empowering professionals from LMICs to lead change in their own contexts, it directly contributes to St Christopher’s ambition of national and global leadership in palliative care.
## EIGHTY COUNTRIES, 1,000 LEARNERS, ONE COMMON GOAL
The Global Palliative Nursing Network (GPNN) offers free peer support and professional development to any nurse working in palliative care anywhere in the world. Currently there are 1,000 members, working across
more than 80 countries. It was established to support nurses at risk of professional isolation, to increase their professional confidence and capabilities, and strengthen their professional identity. Members enjoy a variety of benefits and access to high-quality webinars, an annual conference and the opportunity to grow as a Champion nurse through training and access to online resources and material.
In 2025-26, we aim to develop the GPPN further with a Nursing Fellowship and investment in regional leaders, encouraging members to publish and build strategic relationships that endorse the network.
## **Yangden and Halima’s story**
**Yangden and Halima shared their experience of the GPNN and the Pathfinders Programme, and the impact of their connection to each other and hundreds of other fellow palliative care nurses.**
**“It’s given us a platform, opened my eyes and widened my horizons,” says Yangden. “I feel like I have benefitted professionally and personally. We are all nurses with a similar dream, facing similar challenges. The network provides a sense of belonging and is a safe space where you can express yourself honestly. I now have global friends and see the work they do despite the challenges they face which inspired me to move forwards.”**
**Halima feels equally connected with her colleagues across the world. “It’s a way of communicating with nurses globally. Before, I felt alone but now I know I am not isolated and we share the same problems, can learn from each other and help each other.”**
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Yangden and Halima
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## NATIONAL RESEARCH PROJECTS
With one of the largest caseloads in the UK, we are in a strong position to be able to carry out research so that we can share cutting-edge thinking and expertise to influence care on a global scale.
St Christopher’s patients, carers and staff participated in several research projects. As of April 2025, we have 38 ongoing or potential research studies of which nine are live, including the nationally important multi-site Palliative Care Outcomes Registry.
We are also involved in a National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR)-funded multi-site portfolio study seeking to develop and refine a virtual reality intervention to help to manage pain for people living with advanced cancer.
Recently we were one of 80 sites across the UK that provided evidence for the CHELsea2 study to determine if providing clinically assisted hydration improves outcomes for people in the last week of life.
## **Create a sustainable business model**
It’s important that St Christopher’s has sufficient resources to enable us to provide a high quality of service and welcome to those at end of life and those close to them.
In doing so, we want our infrastructure to be resilient, to have a low impact on the environment, and to be financially sustainable for the long term.
## REFRESHING OUR PREMISES TO MEET NEED AND TO INCREASE OUR WELCOME
After some years in the planning, we started a refurbishment of the wards – the first in over a decade. Aside from addressing essential infrastructure issues, including drainage and air conditioning, we are also aiming to make them feel more welcoming and less clinical as well as to cater for our changing patient demographic which includes more people with dementia.
**The cafés at Orpington and Sydenham provide a refreshing space to meet and chat**
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**Computer-generated view of what one of the new bedrooms will look like after the ward refurbishment**
We will retain the 32 beds and, by having some bigger bedrooms, we’ll improve the patient environment. Installation of hoists will mean we can move people safely and comfortably, and there will also be more opportunities for patients to personalise their space.
Work started on site in February 2025, and we are on schedule to complete by early 2026. We will continue to deliver inpatient care throughout the programme, aiming to minimise disruption as much as possible.
We continued to further improve other areas of our premises during 2024-25, to enhance our welcome for all visitors. At both our main sites we refreshed our communal areas (reception and cafés), improved accessibility and introduced clearer wayfinding, alongside the introduction of our new brand on site.
## USING RESILIENT TECHNOLOGY THAT EMPOWERS PEOPLE
With the number of potential cyber-threats continually growing, we were pleased that our technology remained resilient throughout the year to support ongoing services. Our phishing awareness campaigns have also demonstrated greater staff appreciation of the threat.
In addition, we achieved the ‘Cyber Essentials’ accreditation during the year.
While resilient, our technology also needs to empower the whole workforce to perform their roles. To that end we installed a new Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool, provided community nurses with lone working devices to keep them safe, and initiated an audio project which enables patients with dementia to listen to music with their partners.
AI offers many exciting opportunities, and we will be further exploring its potential in 2025-26.
## ROLLING OUT A GREEN STRATEGY TO REDUCE OUR ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
We are committed to ensuring that the end of life care we provide has a minimal impact on the environment.
In its first full year, our Green Group helped raise the profile of environmental issues within the hospice and targeted specific projects. These included extending the roll out of LED lighting, actions to minimise waste, and successfully completing our reporting to the Environment Agency as part of ESOS stage 3.
We also scoped and selected a new finance and expenses system in time to implement it on the first day of the new financial year. Aside from improving our financial controls and management information, this new system will also reduce paper use, further minimising our environmental impact.
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Our stores are now even more welcoming and attractive to people wanting to support us across south east London
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## GENERATE SUFFICIENT FINANCES TO FULFIL OUR AMBITIONS
We received around £10 million – 34% of our income – from the NHS in 2024-25.
However with growing patient need, we depend even more on the money raised from our community, whether this be through our charity shops, our fundraising or money left in Wills.
In 2024-25, our community raised an incredible £17.7 million – 60% of our total income. This means that we were able to support three out of every five people thanks to our local population.
## RETAIL REFRESH AND REBRAND REAPS REWARD
The last year has seen the completion of the rebrand of all 24 of St Christopher’s shops across south London, making the stores even more welcoming and attractive to people looking to buy outstanding pre-loved items at affordable prices while also contributing to our ongoing fundraising efforts.
Overall, sales across the stores were up by £174k on the previous year, an incredible effort by all of the 77 paid staff and more than 600 tireless volunteers. We also sold 1,380,135 items to 639,758 customers.
Other significant improvements to the estate included moving our children’s store in East Dulwich to new premises on Lordship Lane and completing a full renovation of the Crystal Palace shop. Both of these initiatives have resulted in increased trade.
In line with the organisation’s goal to minimise our impact on the environment, we’ve introduced offer and clearance lines – providing the public with an outlet for thousands of value items that would otherwise end up in landfill.
Similarly, the last year has seen us establish active stock donation relationships with two major organisations – Transport for London and Marks & Spencer. We’ll be looking to build on this excellent platform by attracting new corporate partners in the next year.
## **Adele and Veronica’s story**
**With decades of experience working with some of the best-known high-street brands, Adele Bambridge and Veronica Herranz are putting their fashion knowhow to profitable use volunteering for St Christopher’s.**
**Adele, who only recently retired after a career that saw her work as a director of Debenhams, and Veronica, whose CV includes names like Austin Reed and M&S, devised and are executing an effective e-commerce strategy for selling the best donations St Christopher’s receives.**
**Volunteering one day a week in the Streatham shop, friends Veronica, from Balham, and Adele, who lives in Clapham, are earning the hospice £1,000 a month selling middle- to high-end items via eBay.**
**While they both appreciate the greater flexibility of volunteering over working for money, both Adele and Veronica treat their role exactly as they did while in fulltime paid employment – with the utmost professionalism.**
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**Knowing where the proceeds of the sales they process go is the motivation that drives them.**
**“Having seen palliative care in action you realise that everything we do here helps make it happen and for me that’s a strong personal connection,” adds Veronica.**
**On their designated volunteering day, Tuesday, the pair arrive for work and immediately go online to see how the 15-20 items they list each week are selling.**
**“The reach of e-commerce is much broader,” says Veronica. “We are selling to people all over the country and can demand a higher price than in-store because we have a much wider reach.**
**“With our strong knowledge of fashion brands and understanding of their worth, we know how to price and sell them.”**
**Using all their retail nous, Veronica and Adele work as effectively as they can in their limited time slot, selecting the items for sale, before photographing, listing and then pricing them.**
**As if their small office at the back of the Streatham shop wasn’t busy enough, with rails, boxes and computers, it also doubles as an occasional repair shop, as Adele and Veronica put their sewing skills to good work fixing belt**
**loops or adding missing buttons to ensure items attract the best possible price.**
**Both women say they can see the potential to grow St Christopher’s online presence and are keen to encourage others to try volunteering in St Christopher’s stores.**
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Adele and Veronica
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We had 640,000 customers supporting us in our 24 shops
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A disco-themed Fun Walk marshal point
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## FUNDRAISING ACTIVITIES MAKING AN IMPACT
In 2024-25, we raised over £12 million across all our diverse fundraising activities including money left to us in Wills. We introduced new campaigns and built on the successes of established events, nurturing new and existing
relationships. It is only with the generous support of the public that we are able to support as many people as we do each year.
Our in-memory giving reached £866,000, and our Trusts income exceeded £900,000. The range of our activity also included community and events, major donors, corporate partnerships, lottery, legacies, Gift Aid and direct mail.
## FUN WALK A RESOUNDING SUCCESS
On 12 May 2024, we held a fantastic Fun Walk at Keston Common, attended by 1,960 walkers as well as many families, friends and supporters, who helped us deliver a unique day of community, celebration and remembrance raising over £200,000.
Collin Wimble, who took part in the event in memory of his brother Chris, said: “The Fun Walk is the best organised walk I have ever done, and I have done a lot of walks. There is just something about it. I had a triple heart valve replacement, and I was determined to be fit enough to carry Chris into the church for his funeral. That is why I took up walking. Then I saw about the Fun Walk on St Christopher’s Facebook page and thought, I have to do this for Chris.” Every walker at Fun Walk has a story like Collin’s, making Fun Walk not only our biggest fundraising event of the year, but also a wonderful moment to come together as a community to remember our loved ones.
**Fun Walk is a wonderful moment to come together as a community to remember our loved ones as well as fundraise**
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Our new Christmas Appeal showed the vibrancy, fun and warmth of St Christopher’s
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## A NEW CHRISTMAS APPEAL
In December 2024, we launched our first Christmas fundraising appeal since 2018, which succeeded in raising over £100,000 from both loyal supporters and new donors in our community. This is a huge increase from the last Christmas appeal, which raised around £11,000.
The appeal, which asked donors to fund Christmas meals at the hospice, was brought to life through the words of one of St Christopher’s nurses, who from his own perspective told the story of what Christmas is like at St Christopher’s, and how joyful and heart-warming the atmosphere is. As well as raising vital funds, the campaign was successful in helping to dispel commonly held stereotypes about life in a hospice, showing the vibrancy, fun and warmth of St Christopher’s.
## THIS IS HOSPICE CARE: THE SECTOR UNITES TO CHAMPION LEGACY GIVING
In February 2025, we took part in a national, collaborative campaign led by Hospice UK alongside over 140 other hospices across England and Wales to raise awareness of the vital need for gifts in Wills and to help drive legacy donations for the sector.
While St Christopher’s raised £6.4 million in 2024-25 through legacy giving, as the need for our services rises, so will the reliance on this steady and highly valued income stream that helps us plan for the future. This first burst of This is
Hospice Care brought the sector together for the first time in a collaborative effort to champion the importance of end of life care to our national health provision.
Neil Diamond, a Trustee for St Christopher’s, told his and his wife Linda’s story as part of the campaign to help bring to life vividly why end of life care matters so much. Linda, who died in 2018, was cared for at home by the St Christopher’s team. “Lots of people think about including St Christopher’s in their Will, but don’t get around to it and then the moment passes. My advice would be, don’t miss the opportunity,” Nick said. “Even 1% can be left to St Christopher’s in your Will so those closest to you still inherit 99%. Every gift makes a difference and means St Christopher’s can continue to provide the wonderful support I’ve been fortunate enough to experience.”
The campaign will continue next year, with future bursts planned for September 2025 and February 2026.
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## **Tackle ethical issues**
## ADVOCATE FOR IMPROVED FUNDING FOR END OF LIFE CARE
Funding for hospices in the UK gained even greater prominence as a hot button news topic in 2024-25 and St Christopher’s, which receives just a third of its funding from the NHS, was an active voice in the campaign for an increase in government funding.
With nearly all hospices receiving a similar proportion of funding (or less) by government, and this also not keeping up with both inflation and the growing patient need, St Christopher’s believes the national funding model for hospices needs review.
In October 2024, we hosted a pop-up shop in the Houses of Parliament to highlight the fact that retail income for hospices nationally is now greater than the NHS income they receive, and that a number of hospices have been forced to make redundancies and cut services as a result of growing financial pressure.
More than 100 MPs attended the pop-up which we ran in partnership with Hospice UK. Throughout the day we had many fruitful conversations on the need for short- and long-term funding solutions.
We also secured 61 signatures on our Open Letter to Care Minister Stephen Kinnock calling for improved funding provision for hospices.
On 19 December 2024, Health Secretary Wes Streeting announced a short-term funding solution of £100m across 2024-25 and 2025-26 for adult hospices across the UK, with another £26m going to hospices for children and young people. This marked a step in the right direction, but longer-term funding reform is needed for the sector.
On 13 January 2025, a Backbench Business Debate on Hospice and Palliative Care was hosted in the House of Commons. We wrote to all our local MPs encouraging them to attend and Liam Conlon, MP for Penge and Beckenham, attended and spoke in support of St Christopher’s and hospices across the UK and the call for longer-term sustainable funding.
## ADVOCATE FOR IMPROVED PALLIATIVE AND END OF LIFE CARE
As part of the NHS consultation process to shape its 10-Year Health Plan, we submitted a formal response highlighting the critical role of hospice and palliative care in a futurefit health system. Our response reflects our vision for a
system that values compassionate care at the end of life as a core part of healthcare delivery, not an optional add-on.
We used this opportunity to advocate for:
- Increased community care
- Fairer funding for hospices
- Greater support for non-medicalised care
- Better integrated systems and technology
- Improved death literacy
- End of life care planning
- Addressing inequalities in end of life care.
In the response we outlined the issues, case for change and the change we want to see under each area to ensure a more equitable and accessible healthcare landscape where the nuances of end of life care are acknowledged and addressed.
We also submitted a consultation response to the End of Life Care Commission, helping to highlight both the strengths and shortfalls of palliative and end of life provision. We shared evidence and insights from our clinical practice, research and partnerships to inform recommendations for a more inclusive, coordinated and compassionate model of care. Our aim is to ensure that the Commission’s findings contribute meaningfully to broader policy, including the NHS 10-Year Health Plan, and lead to practical improvements in care for people approaching the end of life.
## ENGAGING IN AND INFORMING THE DEBATE ON ASSISTED DYING
At St Christopher’s we continue to hold a neutral position on assisted dying and we acknowledge the wide-ranging views held by the public and professionals.
The Assisted Dying Bill which was passed through parliament has significant implications for society, policymakers, health systems and hospices. All stages of the Bill call for informed debate and understanding about why someone might request an assisted death, who should respond and the implications for those working in palliative care. That’s why we have engaged in this topic throughout; sharing our learning and expertise with policy-makers, other hospices and any other stakeholders interested to hear more.
Prior to the Second Reading of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill on 29 November 2024 we actively engaged with MPs to ensure they were informed and prepared ahead of the debate.
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During our Hospice Funding event in the Houses of Parliament, assisted dying was raised in almost every conversation and there was much interest in our community research on the topic.
Prior to the reading, we published a preliminary report which was shared with all MPs outlining the broad range of experiences and perspectives held by the more than 50 community members across south London who took part in our Assisted Dying Community Research Project. It provided learning, data and insight into people’s perspectives on life, death, healthcare and assisted dying, including insight from people who, throughout this debate, have been largely unheard.
We also invited our local MPs in to visit the hospice to find out more. Liam Conlon MP visited, meeting with staff, patients and families.
Earlier this year we submitted written evidence to the Public Bill Committee considering the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill. Our submission drew on our extensive expertise in end of life care and sets out specific concerns and recommendations to ensure any future legislation prioritises safe, equitable and compassionate personcentred care.
We focused on three core areas: safeguarding mental capacity and protecting against coercion; embedding a mandatory multidisciplinary team (MDT) approach to support complex decision-making; and addressing health inequalities to ensure universal, inclusive access to support.
## RAISING OUR VOICE ON THESE IMPORTANT ISSUES
Throughout the year we appeared in more than 900 pieces of high-profile media coverage on assisted dying and the importance of hospice care, including in _The Times_ and _The Guardian_ and on Sky News, BBC and ITV.
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Our ‘shop’ during the Hospice Funding event in Parliament
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Liam Conlon MP visited us to meet patients and families
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In advance of the Bill’s Second Reading, _Sky News_ recorded an in-depth news item at St Christopher’s demonstrating hospice and palliative care and included interviews with Interim Chief Executive Jan Noble and Clinical Nurse Specialist (Learning Disabilities) Phoebe Mooney.
Notably, on the day of the Bill’s Second Reading, we were featured on Sky News, LBC and BBC Radio 1.
_Sunday Times_ journalist Steve Bleach spent two days with our teams in November resulting in a long-form, thoughtprovoking and considered piece around the issues and the repercussions and considerations for the hospice sector.
In February 2025, Social Work, Welfare and Safeguarding Lead Michele King was interviewed on Sky News at the hospice. This was in response to the proposed amendment (which has since been approved) removing the requirement for a high court judge to sign off on the process and replacing it with a panel of experts, including a social worker, psychiatrist and senior legal representative. Michele spoke about the expertise social workers could bring to this process.
In October 2024, as part of Hospice Care Week coverage on hospice funding, our Clinical Team Lead Eva Trowers was quoted in a story issued by PA Media which ran across 330 national, broadcast and regional publications.
Statements we issued from Director of Finance and Corporate Services John Vickers and Jan Noble both before and after the Labour government’s first budget received coverage in a number of national newspapers.
Our vice president Dame Sheila Hancock, briefed by us on the crisis in hospice funding, used an appearance on ITV’s _Lorraine_ and _Channel 5 News_ to raise the issue and cited us as an example of excellent palliative care.
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FranL pictured in our gar
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## **STRUCTURE GOVERNANCE** , AND **MANAGEMENT**
**St Christopher’s Hospice was incorporated as a company limited by guarantee on 21 January 1961 and is governed by its Articles of Association. St Christopher’s Hospice is registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales.**
St Christopher’s Hospice has a wholly owned subsidiary, St Christopher’s (Trading) Limited, company number 02604519. The registered office of St Christopher’s Hospice and its subsidiary is 51-59 Lawrie Park Road, Sydenham, London SE26 6DZ.
## HOW WE ARE GOVERNED
The Board, consisting of the Trustees named at the back of this report, has ultimate responsibility for the proper and effective management of St Christopher’s Hospice. The Board is responsible for all major strategic decisions, for monitoring the organisation’s performance, and ensuring that it complies with its Articles of Association and applicable laws and regulations.
Neil Goulden has been the Chair of the Trustees since 1 April 2021 and Eleanor Brown has been the Vice Chair since 21 July 2022.
The Board delegates day-to-day management and decision-making to the Executive Team, which is led by the Chief Executive. The Executive Team is required to act in furtherance of the Charity’s strategy. The Board holds the Chief Executive and Executive Team to account for its leadership of the organisation.
The current governance structure is below. Each of the six Board sub-committees (Governance; People & Workforce; Quality & Impact; Finance Audit & Risk; Education, Research & End of Life Policy; and Fundraising Committee) and the Investment Committee, the Premises Working Group, St Christopher’s Trading Board and 1985 Pensions Board are chaired by a Trustee and at least one other Trustee sits on each.
Committee terms of reference define responsibilities and delegated responsibilities and are reviewed annually.
## **St Christopher’s Board of Trustees**
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Education,
Finance, Quality People &
Fundraising Research & Governance Premises
Audit & Risk & Impact Workforce
Committee EoL Policy Committee Working Group
Committee Committee Committee
Committee
Research Workforce
Investments Trading
Governance Development
Committee Board
Committee Committee
FREDIE Group
Research
(Equality, 1985
Strategy
Diversity and Pensions Board
Committee
Inclusion)
Patient &
Organisational
Service Safeguarding Inequalities Staff
Safety
User Safety Committee Committee Forum
Committee
Committee
Information
UPROMS Clinical Ethics
Governance Green Group
Committee Committee Committee ● Trustee Board
● Other Trustee Boards
and sub-committees
● ERELP sub-committees
● P&W sub-committees
Medicines Falls Nutrition & Infection ● Q&I sub-committees
Tissue Viability
Optimisation Management Group Dysphagia Prevention & ● FAR sub-committee
Group Group Group Control Group ● OSC sub committee
● PASUS sub-committees
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- PASUS sub-committees
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The Board may delegate any of its powers to one of its sub-committees. The committees report to the Board after each meeting. Each sub-committee usually meets quarterly face to face.
Trustees commissioned an external governance and effectiveness review by Bayes Business School in 2023 and the recommendations and action plan are being monitored by the Governance Committee. A follow-up external governance review is planned to start at the beginning of 2026.
St Christopher’s also has Trustees with the following key responsibilities: Safeguarding; Equality, Diversity & Inclusion; and Freedom to Speak Up. Each has a role description and has received the relevant training for these roles.
## TRUSTEES’ DUTY TO PROMOTE THE SUCCESS OF THE CHARITY – SECTION 172 STATEMENT
The Trustees are the directors of St Christopher’s Hospice and have a duty to promote the success of the Charity and, in doing so, are required by section 172(1) of the Companies Act 2006 to have regard to various specific factors, including:
- the likely consequences of decisions in the long term
- the interests of employees
- the need to foster the Charity’s relationships with thirdparty stakeholders, which, in the case of St Christopher’s Hospice, includes dying people and those close to them, the local community, the NHS and our supporters
- the impact of the Charity’s operations on the community and the environment
- the desirability of the Charity maintaining a reputation for high standards of business conduct.
The Charity’s strategy takes into account the likely consequence of any decision in the long term. The Trustees approved a three-year organisational strategy for 2023-26, and this Annual Report and Accounts gives updates on progress against the second year of that strategy.
The Board meets at least quarterly throughout the year. It assesses progress against the strategy, identifies areas for focus for the following year and receives updates on the Charity’s performance and plans. Its committees also review plans with regard to the particular activities overseen by the committee concerned. The Board also has an annual away day for strategic planning.
The Board obtains assurance that attention is given to the factors set out in section 172 when promoting the success of the Charity, by monitoring that the Executive Team and the wider organisation are delivering the strategy and complying with specific policies.
Engagement with the Charity’s primary stakeholder groups is set out on pages 9 to 27. The Executive Team regularly reports to the Board on key stakeholder relations and engagement activities, current issues and relevant feedback from interactions with stakeholders.
The Trustees also follow a formal process to regularly manage and review risks faced by the Charity, set out on page 33.
The Charity ensures that it maintains a reputation for high standards of business conduct by having in place a range of policies and processes that promote corporate responsibility and ethical behaviour. Areas covered include: fundraising (our fundraising practices are discussed below); gifts, hospitality and anti-bribery; conflicts of interest; safeguarding, bullying and harassment; and whistleblowing. Policies are reviewed periodically.
## APPOINTMENT OF NEW TRUSTEES
The Board is made up of individuals who have a diverse, varied and balanced cross section of life, skills and experience. When embarking on the recruitment process, the Trustee vacancy is advertised on the St Christopher’s website, in various publications and on social media. The specialist services of a recruitment agency may also be employed where necessary. Prospective candidates are invited to apply, outlining their relevance for the role. After the closing date, applicants are shortlisted against the person specification, and potential candidates are invited to interview. The interviews are usually carried out by the Chair, Vice Chair and a subset of other Trustees. Successful candidates are then formally appointed by a resolution of the Board.
Trustees are appointed by resolution of the Board for a term of up to three years. Upon expiry, they shall be eligible for re-appointment for a further term or terms of up to three years. All Trustees sign a code of conduct on appointment. The Trustees, Chair and Vice Chair carry out their responsibilities in line with a documented description of their role.
New Trustees undertake an induction process designed to equip them with the information and understanding they need to become effective and valuable members of the Board as quickly as possible. The induction process involves the following:
- An induction pack containing key information about St Christopher’s, the governance structure, the roles and responsibilities of Trustees and the organisational work of the Board of Trustees and its committees
- A Trustee mentor for at least the first year
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- An induction programme which enables new Trustees to gain a good understanding of the operations of the organisation
- An informal review meeting with the Chair of the Board at the end of a Trustee’s first year and annually thereafter.
All Trustees give their time voluntarily and receive no benefit from the Charity. Out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the Trustees in carrying out the role can be reimbursed in accordance with the organisation’s expenses policy. £588 of expenses were claimed from the Charity this financial year. All Trustees were required to complete and sign an annual declaration of interests, and declare any relevant gifts received.
## PUBLIC BENEFIT
The Board is aware of the Charity Commission’s guidance in relation to public benefit. The report indicates how our activities have delivered public benefit.
## FUNDRAISING DISCLOSURE
St Christopher’s Hospice has voluntarily subscribed to the Fundraising Regulator and is committed to adherence to the Code of Fundraising Practice set by the Fundraising Regulator. We encourage any fundraising service providers we engage with to also sign up to the code, and we received no complaints logged with the Fundraising Regulator in 2024-25.
The Fundraising team at St Christopher’s is predominently employed by the charity, led by the Director of Income Generation and Communications, with the exception of the Trust and Grants fundraising which is delivered by contract through Compton Fundraising Consultants, who are members of the Association of Professional Fundraisers (AFC). Financial performance and reporting, compliance against the fundraising code and other legislation, complaints and incident handling, and the overall leadership of our fundraising activity sits inside the Charity’s Executive Team structure and now reports to a new Fundraising subcommittee of the Board of Trustees.
The Fundraising team engages professional third-party suppliers to help raise funds particularly where we do not have the expertise in-house. We have safeguards in place when working with suppliers so that we protect our supporters and the reputation of our Charity, including Lottery Fundraising Services and Engage and Connect, the companies which support our lottery. We ensure all these agents observe the highest standards in terms of fundraising practice and monitor their performance
through the use of mystery shopping and random checks with donors.
St Christopher’s Hospice is a member of the Hospice Income Generation Network, the Hospice Lottery Association and many of our fundraisers are members of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising. The Director of Income Generation and Communications chairs the Hospice UK Income Generation Leaders Network.
Our website outlines our complaints policy for the public. We received five fundraising complaints in 2024-25 (202324: two fundraising complaints). Our policy is to respond to all complaints within 10 days. Serious complaints are escalated to our Executive Team and Trustees to consider lessons learnt. We report to the Fundraising Regulator and Gambling Commission on the totality of our complaints.
We have policies and procedures in place to safeguard the vulnerable and we ensure our fundraisers and third-party suppliers adhere to these policies. We are also signed up to the Fundraising Preference Service to enable individuals to opt out from receiving fundraising communications from us. We received zero requests through this service last year.
## PAY POLICY FOR SENIOR STAFF
The pay of the Chief Executive is set by the Governance Committee with any changes authorised by the Chair of the Trustee Board. The pay for the remainder of the Executive Team is agreed by the Governance Committee in consultation with the Chief Executive. The pay for other senior staff is agreed by the Chief Executive in consultation with the Director of People & Organisational Development and the member of the Executive Team for the Directorate.
## EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY
In addition to St Christopher’s Investors being awarded Diversity Silver accreditation from the National Centre for Diversity in late 2024, St Christopher’s is also a ‘Disability Confident’ employer. This means that we undertake full and fair consideration of all applications for employment including those made by people with a disability. We offer a guaranteed interview to applicants who qualify under the ‘Disability Confident’ scheme and we are committed to supporting both disabled people back into the workplace and those who become disabled whilst employed by the organisation.
St Christopher’s works with an occupational health service and in partnership with external organisations such as Access to Work, to provide support and advice to disabled people working with us. We have recently developed our own wellbeing information resource for staff to signpost
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## them to a range of internal and external wellbeing resources.
St Christopher’s Hospice has been a signatory to the ‘Mindful Employer Charter’ since August 2016. Our practices were reviewed in 2023-24 and were found to demonstrate our commitment to supporting individuals with mental health illnesses and actively seeking to alleviate causes of workplace stress wherever possible. We are an AgeInclusive Employer as recognised by the Centre for Ageing Better and have embedded a supportive culture, offering flexibility and aiming to be an inclusive employer for all ages across our workforce.
## GENDER PAY GAP
St Christopher’s is compliant with legislation in relation to equal pay regardless of gender or other protected characteristics
The gender pay gap shows the difference in the average earnings between all men and all women employed across the organisation on 5 April each year. This information is reported annually on the national Gender Pay Gap website. The April 2024 data identified that of our 545 staff, 82.6% were women and 17.4% were men.
This year we reported that, as in the previous four years, women at St Christopher’s earn, on average, slightly higher pay than men. Overall the St Christopher’s mean gender pay gap has shifted from -3.69% (2023) to -4.09% (2024). There has been a significant widening in the median gender pay gap, from -9.94% (2023) to -22.56% in 2024. The median position is in the upper middle quartile for women with the median wage increasing by 11.68% since last year. The median position for men is in the lower middle quartile with a 1.42% increase since last year.
It is, however, recognised that having a predominantly female workforce means small fluctuations across the male workforce has an impact on the gender pay gap.
## EMPLOYEE INFORMATION
St Christopher’s is committed to providing information to employees, when appropriate and feasible, and consulting with them and/or their representatives on a regular basis. One way this is achieved is through our Staff Forum which seeks feedback, when appropriate, on proposed changes to terms and conditions of service or ways of working. Staff representatives also bring matters of concern or suggestions for improvement to the attention of senior management through this group, with the working environment and organisational initiatives also discussed. This feedback mechanism enables our employees’ views to be heard and considered on an ongoing basis.
## STREAMLINED ENERGY AND CARBON REPORTING (SECR)
As part of SECR, our UK greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and energy use for the last two years are as set out below:
**----- Start of picture text -----**
UK GHG EMISSIONS AND ENERGY USE DATA
FOR THE PERIOD 1 APRIL TO 31 MARCH
2024-25 2023-24
Energy consumption used to 2,753,854 2,585,986
calculate emissions (kWh)
Energy consumption
breakdown (kWH):
• Gas
• Electricity
• Transport fuel
Direct GHG emissions: gas 268.21 230.56
consumption
Indirect energy emissions: 228.87 226.64
purchased electricity
Other indirect emissions: 51.00 60.97
employee mileage while
undertaking activities for
St Christopher’s Hospice
Total gross emissions in 548.08 518.17
metric tonnes CO2e
Intensity ratio in in metric 1.30 1.29
tonnes CO2e per staff FTE
**----- End of picture text -----**
## QUANTIFICATION AND REPORTING METHODOLOGY
We have followed the 2019 HM Government Environmental Reporting Guidelines. We have also used the GHG Reporting Protocol – Corporate Standard and the UK Government’s Conversion Factors for Company Reporting.
## INTENSITY MEASUREMENT
The chosen intensity measurement ratio is total gross emissions in metric tonnes per staff FTE.
## MEASURES TO IMPROVE ENERGY EFFICIENCY
Total energy use increased during 2024-25, but this has been driven by an increase to headcount. The average carbon usage per employee has remained relatively stable at 1.30 CO2e compared to 1.29 CO2e per staff member during the previous year.
It is important to St Christopher’s and its staff that we reduce our environmental impact where possible.
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A cross-organisational Green Group, which meets quarterly, was in place for the first full year last year. The group has five strategic aims with associated plans, in order to reduce our environmental impact further:
- Demonstrate commitment and engagement
- Improve energy efficiency
- Minimise waste
- Reduce carbon emissions
- Enhance our natural environment.
We completed our ESOS stage 3 reporting to the Environment Agency during 2024-25. No significant issues were identified.
Future areas of focus include replacement of some windows at our Sydenham site, and feasibility studies to have more solar panels and to install a business management system. We will also be recruiting a dedicated safety, health and environment manager during 2025-26.
- Failure to agree a level of NHS funding which pays for a sufficient proportion of NHS contract work; the NHS currently only pays for a minority of the work we do for them
- Delivery and disruption of ward refurbishment impacts on patient care, safety or staff
- Cyber-attacks such as corruption via computer viruses and other malware, in an ever-changing cyber security environment.
Actions intended to mitigate these risks include:
- Ongoing work to develop relationships with local commissioners and key influencers within the health system
- Additional governance processes and resourcing to oversee delivery of the ward refurbishment programme
- Further measures to enhance our IT resilience including ongoing improvements to our IT infrastructure, staff training, and business continuity testing in the event of a cyber-attack.
## PRINCIPAL RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES
The Board, in conjunction with the Executive Team, follows a formal process to manage the risks faced by the Charity.
This process focuses on six potential risk areas – strategic, financial, services, premises, workforce and information. Risks are assessed as to the severity of the risk to the organisation and accompanied by strategies to eliminate or mitigate the risk.
The risk management process is conducted at least annually and comprises the following:
- 1 Identification and review of key risks facing the organisation, accompanied by consideration of strategies/plans to be employed to mitigate risks by the Executive Team
- 2 Review of the updated risk register and the mitigation plans by the Finance, Audit & Risk Committee and the Board of Trustees
- 3 Review and agreement of the risk register and mitigation plans by the Finance, Audit & Risk Committee and the Board of Trustees
- 4 Receipt of reports regarding progress and success of mitigation plans by the Finance, Audit & Risk Committee and the Board of Trustees.
This process has confirmed that key risks facing the organisation are:
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## **FINANCIAL** REVIEW
## **These financial statements include the results of St Christopher’s Hospice and its trading subsidiary, St Christopher’s (Trading) Limited for the year ended 31 March 2025.**
The charitable activities of St Christopher’s Hospice are identified under five main headings in the Statement of Financial Activities:
- Inpatient care
- Community care/outpatients
- Education, research and policy
- Bereavement services
- Community action.
Except for education, research and policy, the services provided to a patient could include one or more of these activities during their care. The cost of individual patient care may span across one or more of the charitable activities identified.
In addition to these charitable activities, St Christopher’s Hospice has a trading company. The activity of this company is shown on the Statement of Financial Activities as income/costs of trading company.
For the year ended 31 March 2025, at an operational level, St Christopher’s Hospice recorded a net loss, before other recognised gains and losses, of £2,095k (2024: £987k net loss).
Overall, St Christopher’s Hospice generated a net decrease in funds of £2,222k (2024: a net increase in funds of £159k). This was after recognising other unrealised gains and losses as follows:
- 1 Unrealised loss from the investment portfolio of £160k (2024: unrealised gain of £1,185k) and a realised gain from the portfolio of £33k (2024: realised loss of £39k)
Our investment portfolio managed by Cazenove Capital Management increased in value from £16,433k in March 2024 to £16,571k in March 2025. The increase of £138k is the net amount of investment income and the investment gains and losses mentioned above. We have not drawn down on our investment portfolio during 2024-25, and there are no plans to draw down on it during 2025-26.
Our bank deposits decreased from £8,924k in March 2024 to £797k in March 2025.
Taking our investment portfolio and bank deposits together, our overall investments decreased from £25,357k in March 2024 to £17,368k in March 2025.
While there has been a significant decrease to our investments figure, our interest-bearing accounts increased to £6,914k at March 2025 from £4,807k at March 2024, and we had higher amounts due to us from trade debtors at March 2025 (£3,122k) compared to March 2024 (£924k), which have since been paid post year-end.
- 2 An actuarial gain/loss from the FRS 102 valuation of the St Christopher’s Hospice (1985) Pension Scheme of £0k (2024: also £0k)
The FRS 102 actuarial loss is nil as a result of four factors:
- An actuarial gain on the scheme liabilities of £719k (2024: gain of £212k) arising from a change in the demographic and financial assumptions.
- An actuarial loss on the scheme investments portfolio of £770k (2024: loss of £385k)
- Experience losses arising on the plan liabilities of £6k (2024: losses of £17k)
- A gain of £57k to reflect the amount of the pension surplus that is not recoverable (2024: gain of £190k).
## INCOME
Total income received in 2024-25 was £29,419k which was a 6.8% increase on the previous year (2024: £27,541k). Legacies income was £175k less than the previous year. Along with a decrease to investment income of £71k, this was more than offset by increases to other income streams, namely donations and gifts (+£1,028k), NHS income (+£630k), income from trading company (+£174k) and income from education, fees and other income (+£292k).
Further details on our income variances are shown below.
## DONATIONS AND GIFTS
Income from donations and gifts was £5,863k, which was £1,028k higher than the previous year (2024: £4,835k).
£537k of this increase relates to a grant from the Department of Health and Social Care via Hospice UK, this being St Christopher’s share of the £25m awarded to the English hospice sector for the purposes of capital expenditure in 2024-25.
The other £491k related to increases across a number of fundraising streams including income from trusts and community events. We were pleased that our community income showed some growth during the year following the challenges to this fundraising stream during and following the Covid years.
We continue to rely on the generosity of our community to fund our hospice services, for which we are enormously appreciative.
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## LEGACIES
Legacies income of £6,360k was less than the previous year (2024: £6,535k). We remain incredibly grateful for those people who choose to remember St Christopher’s in their Wills. Given the nature of this income, it is hard to project income levels as accurately as for other income streams.
## NHS CONTRACTS
Income from the NHS of £9,987k was £630k (6.7%) more than the previous year (2024: £9,357k). Part of this increase is a result of carrying out Hospice at Home services to the boroughs of Lambeth and Southwark.
While we are thankful for this money, St Christopher’s is caring for an ever-increasing number of people, which means that the NHS pays for only a minority of the services we provide for it, and at a decreasing proportion.
## INCOME AND PERFORMANCE OF TRADING SUBSIDIARIES
The core activity of St Christopher’s (Trading) Limited is the operation of shops, with 24 shops as of March 2025 (24 shops as at March 2024), whose purpose is to raise money for the Charity to spend on charitable activities.
Revenue from St Christopher’s (Trading) Limited increased by 3% to £5,469k (2024: £5,295k), with a net contribution to the Charity of £1,203k (2024: a net contribution of £1,467k). While income has increased the high street is increasingly competitive and challenging during the current economic high climate.
## INVESTMENT INCOME
Investment income for the year of £780k was £71k lower than the previous year (2024: £851k). This is reflective of both lower interest rates and lower cash balances.
## EDUCATION, FEES AND OTHER INCOME
Education, fees and other income was £960k, which was higher than last year (2024: £668k). The increase is due to income from catering, and a full year of work delivering our Hospital at Home work service in Bromley.
## EXPENDITURE
Total expenditure in 2024-25 was £31,514k, which was 10.4% higher than the previous year’s figure (£28,528k). This was largely due to a deliberate growth in headcount (+5%) to support our charitable activities and growing patient need, and to fund cost of living increases.
The cost of raising voluntary income was £2,161k, which was 22.6% higher than the previous year’s figure (2024: £1,762k). With core NHS funding paying for a reducing
proportion of our activity, it is important that we are investing to grow our other income streams.
## STAFF COSTS
During the year, the total average FTE headcount increased to 421 (2024: 401). Staff costs account for 72.3% of the organisation’s total costs (2024: 71.6%). Further details of staff costs and staffing levels can be found in note 7 to the accounts.
## RESERVES POLICY AND GOING CONCERN
St Christopher’s Hospice holds reserves to improve both the financial security and the operational flexibility of the hospice. The Trustees believe the level of reserves held should be sufficient to cover the risks the Charity is exposed to, including safeguarding against the volatility of key income streams.
The Trustees have taken a risk-based approach to assess the level of free reserves required by the Charity. They have also reviewed this alongside the level needed to operate effectively. Considering both aspects, the Trustees believe St Christopher’s Hospice should aim to hold free reserves equivalent to 9-12 months of its operating expenditure, currently equal to £23.6m-£31.5m. The Charity considers free reserves to be the total unrestricted Group reserves, less designated funds. The designated funds held by the Charity are listed in the notes to the accounts. They include a fund to manage the variability of year-on-year legacy income, a fund to expand our charitable impact and to support our long-term sustainability, funds for capital commitments and the net book value of fixed assets. On this basis, free reserves as of 31 March 2025 were £24,511k (2024: £25,780k), equivalent to 9.3 months of operating expenditure (2024: 10.8 months of operating expenditure).
The Trustees have reviewed the financial position of the Charity and its subsidiaries, its forecast cash flows, and its liquidity position for the foreseeable future. This includes the impact of risks as described in the principal risks and uncertainties section above. The Trustees believe that the Charity has adequate resources to continue operational existence for the foreseeable future. As a result, they continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the Annual Report and Accounts.
## INVESTMENT POLICY
The Board of Trustees has approved an investment policy and strategy, which is supervised by the Investment Committee.
The primary objective of the investment policy is to provide financial security and stability for the operation
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of St Christopher’s Hospice. The investment policy also recognises that the organisation is exposed to the risk of a sharp fall in its income due to the variability of legacy income and donations and uncertainty of funds from the NHS. To reflect this position, the Investment Committee with Cazenove Capital Management continues to invest in a varied portfolio in accordance with an asset allocation approved by the Investment Committee.
Investment income has decreased to £780k (2024: £851k), of which £444k (2024: £570k) is interest from cash deposits, and £336k (2024: £281k) is dividend and interest income from the Cazenove Capital Management charity portfolio.
The Investment Policy states that, among other things, Trustees will not invest directly in a company if it carries out activities contrary to the Charity’s purposes and, therefore, against its interests and those of its beneficiaries.
The Investment Committee encourages responsible investment. They are committed to appointing investment managers involved in applying Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) criteria across the investment process. Our existing investment manager, Cazenove Capital Management, has demonstrated that it uses these criteria.
## STATEMENT OF BOARD’S RESPONSIBILITIES
The Board members (directors for the purposes of Company law) who served during the year, and the period for which they were in office, are detailed on page 62.
The Board is responsible for preparing the Report of the Board of Trustees and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and regulations.
Company law requires the Board to prepare financial statements for each financial year. Under that law, the Board has elected to prepare the financial statements in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (United Kingdom Accounting Standards and applicable law). Under company law, the Board must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Charity and of the result of the Group for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the Board is required to:
- prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Group will continue in business.
The Board is responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the Group and Charity’s transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the Group’s financial position and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Group and the Charity and hence for taking reasonable steps to prevent and detect fraud and other irregularities.
## STATEMENT AS TO DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION TO AUDITORS
The Trustees have taken all necessary steps to make themselves aware of any relevant audit information and establish that the auditors are aware of that information.
As far as the Trustees are aware, there is no relevant audit information that the Charity’s auditors are unaware of.
## APPOINTMENT OF AUDITORS
Moore Kingston Smith LLP were appointed as auditor to the Charity and in accordance with section 485 of the Companies Act 2006, a resolution proposing that they be reappointed will be put at a general meeting.
Signed on behalf of the Board of Trustees
## NEIL GOULDEN
## Chair of the Board of Trustees
St Christopher’s Hospice, 51-59 Lawrie Park Road, London SE26 6DZ
1 October 2025
- select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently
- make judgments and accounting estimates that are reasonable and prudent
- follow applicable accounting standards
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## INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT TO THE MEMBERS OF ST CHRISTOPHER’S HOSPICE
## OPINION
We have audited the financial statements of St Christopher’s Hospice (the ‘parent charitable company’) and its subsidiaries (the ’group’) for the year ended 31 March 2025 which comprise the Group Statement of Financial Activities, the Group and Parent Charitable Company Balance Sheets, the Group Cash Flow Statement and notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
In our opinion the financial statements:
- give a true and fair view of the state of the group’s and the parent charitable company’s affairs as at 31 March 2025 and of the group’s incoming resources and application of resources, including its income and expenditure, for the year then ended;
- have been properly prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice; and
- have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.
## BASIS FOR OPINION
We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs(UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor’s Responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the charitable company in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.
## CONCLUSIONS RELATING TO GOING CONCERN
In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the trustees’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.
Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events
or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the group’s and parent charitable company’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.
Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.
## OTHER INFORMATION
The other information comprises the information included in the annual report, other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. The trustees are responsible for the other information contained in the annual report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.
Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether there is a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.
We have nothing to report in this regard.
## OPINIONS ON OTHER MATTERS PRESCRIBED BY THE COMPANIES ACT 2006
In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of the audit:
- the information given in the strategic report and the trustees’ annual report for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements; and
- the strategic report and the trustees’ annual report have been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.
## MATTERS ON WHICH WE ARE REQUIRED TO REPORT BY EXCEPTION
In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the group and parent charitable company and their environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have
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not identified material misstatements in the strategic report or the trustees’ annual report.
We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters where the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:
- the parent charitable company has not kept adequate and sufficient accounting records, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches not visited by us; or
- the parent charitable company’s financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or
- certain disclosures of trustees’ remuneration specified by law are not made; or
- we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit.
## RESPONSIBILITIES OF TRUSTEES
As explained more fully in the trustees’ responsibilities statement set out on page 36, the trustees (who are also the directors of the charitable company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.
In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the group and parent charitable company’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the group or parent charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.
## AUDITOR’S RESPONSIBILITIES FOR THE AUDIT OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic
decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.
As part of an audit in accordance with ISAs (UK) we exercise professional judgement and maintain professional scepticism throughout the audit. We also:
- Identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to fraud or error, design and perform audit procedures responsive to those risks, and obtain audit evidence that is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion. The risk of not detecting a material misstatement resulting from fraud is higher than for one resulting from error, as fraud may involve collusion, forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, or the override of internal control.
- Obtain an understanding of internal control relevant to the audit in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purposes of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the group and parent charitable company’s internal control.
- Evaluate the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of accounting estimates and related disclosures made by the trustees.
- Conclude on the appropriateness of the trustees’ use of the going concern basis of accounting and, based on the audit evidence obtained, whether a material uncertainty exists related to events or conditions that may cast significant doubt on the group and parent charitable company’s ability to continue as a going concern. If we conclude that a material uncertainty exists, we are required to draw attention in our auditor’s report to the related disclosures in the financial statements or, if such disclosures are inadequate, to modify our opinion. Our conclusions are based on the audit evidence obtained up to the date of our auditor’s report. However, future events or conditions may cause the group or parent charitable company to cease to continue as a going concern.
- Evaluate the overall presentation, structure and content of the financial statements, including the disclosures, and whether the financial statements represent the underlying transactions and events in a manner that achieves fair presentation.
- Obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence regarding the financial information of the entities or business activities within the group to express an opinion on the consolidated financial statements. We are responsible for the direction, supervision and performance of the group audit. We remain solely responsible for our audit report.
38
We communicate with those charged with governance regarding, among other matters, the planned scope and timing of the audit and significant audit findings, including any significant deficiencies in internal control that we identify during our audit.
## EXPLANATION AS TO WHAT EXTENT THE AUDIT WAS CONSIDERED CAPABLE OF DETECTING IRREGULARITIES, INCLUDING FRAUD
Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of noncompliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud. The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud is detailed below.
- Based on this understanding, we designed specific appropriate audit procedures to identify instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. This included making enquiries of management and those charged with governance and obtaining additional corroborative evidence as required.
There are inherent limitations in the audit procedures described above. We are less likely to become aware of instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations that are not closely related to events and transactions reflected in the financial statements. Also, the risk of not detecting a material misstatement due to fraud is higher than the risk of not detecting one resulting from error, as fraud may involve deliberate concealment by, for example, forgery or intentional misrepresentations, or through collusion.
## USE OF OUR REPORT
The objectives of our audit in respect of fraud, are; to identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements due to fraud; to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence regarding the assessed risks of material misstatement due to fraud, through designing and implementing appropriate responses to those assessed risks; and to respond appropriately to instances of fraud or suspected fraud identified during the audit. However, the primary responsibility for the prevention and detection of fraud rests with both management and those charged with governance of the charitable company.
Our approach was as follows:
- We obtained an understanding of the legal and regulatory requirements applicable to the charitable company and considered that the most significant are the Companies Act 2006, the Charities Act 2011, the Charity SORP, and UK financial reporting standards as issued by the Financial Reporting Council.
This report is made solely to the charitable company’s members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable company’s members those matters which we are required to state to them in an auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to any party other than the charitable company and charitable company’s members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.
## JAMES SAUNDERS
## Senior Statutory Auditor
for and on behalf of
Moore Kingston Smith LLP, Statutory Auditor 9 Appold Street, London EC2A 2AP
- 9 October 2025
- We obtained an understanding of how the charitable company complies with these requirements by discussions with management and those charged with governance.
- We assessed the risk of material misstatement of the financial statements, including the risk of material misstatement due to fraud and how it might occur, by holding discussions with management and those charged with governance.
- We inquired of management and those charged with governance as to any known instances of noncompliance or suspected non-compliance with laws and regulations.
39
## CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2025
|**Unrestricted Restricted**
**2025**
**funds**
**funds**
**Notes**
**£’000**
**£’000**
**£’000**
**Income from**
Donations and gifts
4,713
1,150
5,863
Legacies
6,360
–
6,360
Charitable activities
_NHS funding_
2
9,987
–
9,987
_Education, fees and other income_
3
960
–
960
Other trading activities
_Income of trading company_
4
5,469
–
5,469
_Investment income_
780
–
780
**Total income**
28,269
1,150
29,419
**Expenditure on**
Raising voluntary income
2,161
–
2,161
Trading company
4
4,315
–
4,315
6,476
–
6,476
Charitable activities
_Inpatient care_
8,936
99
9,035
_Community care/outpatients_
12,748
91
12,839
_Bereavement services_
861
132
993
_Community action_
761
58
819
_Education, research and policy_
845
507
1,352
24,151
887
25,038
**Total expenditure**
5
30,627
887
31,514
**Net (expenditure)/income before transfers**
6
(2,358)
263
(2,095)
**Transfer between funds**
605
(605)
–
**Net (expenditure) before other**
**recognised gains and losses**
(1,753)
(342)
(2,095)
**Other recognised gains/(losses)**
Actuarial (losses) on defned beneft pension scheme
19
–
–
–
Gains/(losses) on investments: realised
10
33
-
33
(Losses)/gains on investments: unrealised
10
(160)
-
(160)
**Net movement in funds**
(1,880)
(342)
(2,222)
**Total funds at 1 April 2024**
15, 16, 17
44,394
2,361
46,755
**Total funds at 31 March 2025**
15, 16, 17
42,514
2,019
44,533|**2024**
**£’000**
4,835
6,535
9,357
668
5,295
851|
|---|---|
||27,541|
||1,762
3,828|
||5,590|
||8,599
11,450
891
871
1,127|
||22,938|
||28,528|
||(987)
–|
||(987)
–
(39)
1,185|
||159
46,596|
||46,755|
All recognised gains and losses are included in the consolidated statement of financial activities. St Christopher’s Hospice and St Christopher’s (Trading) Limited transactions are derived from continuing activities. An analysis of the results by company is shown in Note 4.
40
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 MARCH 2025
|**Notes**
**Fixed assets**
Tangible fxed assets
9
Intangible fxed assets
9
Investments
10
**Current assets**
Debtors
11
Interest-bearing accounts
**Creditors**
Amounts falling due within one year
12
**Net current assets**
**Net assets**
**Funds**
Restricted
15
Unrestricted
_General_
_Designated_
16
_Non-charitable_
Total unrestricted funds
**Total funds**|**2025**
**£’000**
10,949
179
17,368
28,496
11,597
6,914
18,511
(2,474)
16,037
44,533
2,019
24,511
17,995
8
42,514
44,533|**2024**
**£’000**
10,294
110
25,357|
|---|---|---|
|||35,761|
|||8,538
4,807|
|||13,345|
|||(2,351)|
|||10,994|
|||46,755|
|||2,361
25,780
18,606
8|
|||44,394|
|||46,755|
The financial statements were approved by The Board of Trustees on 1 October 2025 and signed on its behalf by:
NEIL GOULDEN Chair of Trustees
CATHERINE MCDONALD Trustee
41
## BALANCE SHEET: ST CHRISTOPHER’S HOSPICE ENTITY ONLY AS AT 31 MARCH 2025
|**Notes**
**Fixed assets**
Tangible fxed assets
9
Intangible fxed assets
9
Investments
10
**Current assets**
Debtors
11
Interest-bearing accounts
**Creditors**
Amounts falling due within one year
12
**Net current assets**
Net assets excluding pension scheme asset
Defned beneft pension scheme asset
19
**Net assets**
**Funds**
Restricted
15
Unrestricted
_General_
_Designated_
16
Total unrestricted funds
**Total funds**|**2025**
**2024**
**£’000**
**£’000**
10,759
10,085
179
110
17,768
25,757
28,706
35,952
11,571
10,418
6,435
2,462
18,006
12,880
(2,138)
(2,086)
15,868
10,794
44,574
46,746
–
–
44,574
46,746
2,019
2,361
24,560
25,779
17,995
18,606
42,555
44,385
44,574
46,746|**2024**
**£’000**
10,085
110
25,757|
|---|---|---|
|||35,952|
|||10,418
2,462|
|||10,794|
|||46,746
–|
|||46,746|
|||2,361
25,779
18,606|
|||44,385|
|||46,746|
As permitted by Section 408 of the Companies Act 2006, the Statement of Financial Activities of the parent charity is not presented as part of these financial statements. The Charity’s deficit for the year before distribution from the trading subsidiary was £3,376k (2024: £1,308k).
The financial statements were approved by The Board of Trustees on 1 October 2025 and signed on its behalf by:
NEIL GOULDEN Chair of Trustees
CATHERINE MCDONALD Trustee
42
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2025
|CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2025||||
|---|---|---|---|
|||**2025**|**2024**|
||**Notes**|**£’000**|**£’000**|
|**Net cash (used in) operating activities**|A|(4,939)|(1,739)|
|**Cash fows from investing activities**||||
|Interest and dividends received||780|851|
|Purchase of tangible and intangible fxed assets||(1,563)|(952)|
|Decrease/(increase) in investments||7,829|(4,810)|
|**Net cash released from/(used in) investing activities**||7,046|(4,911)|
|**Change in cash and cash equivalents in the year**||2,107|(6,650)|
|**Cash at the beginning of the year**||4,807|11,457|
|**Cash at the end of the year**||6,914|4,807|
|**Reconciliation of net movement in funds**||**2025**|**2024**|
|**to net cash infow from operating activities**|**Notes**|**£’000**|**£’000**|
||A|||
|Net movement in funds||(2,222)|159|
|Interest and dividends receivable||(780)|(851)|
|Depreciation and amortisation charges||839|772|
|Unrealised loss/(gain) on investments||160|(1,185)|
|Proft on the disposal of fxed assets||(3)|(4)|
|Cash received from sale of assets||3|4|
|Increase in debtors||(3,059)|(353)|
|Increase/(decrease) in creditors||33|(301)|
|Increase in dilapidation provision||90|20|
|**Net cash used in operating activities**||(4,939)|(1,739)|
43
## NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2025
## 1 PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES
## **1.1 Basis of accounting**
The financial statements are prepared under the historical cost basis and comply with the Companies Act 2006. The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice ( _Accounting and Reporting by Charities_ ), issued in October 2019 (FRS 102), other relevant provisions of the memorandum and articles of association, and with applicable UK accounting standards.
The figures for both years reflect the full adoption of FRS (Financial Reporting Standard) 102.
The Charity meets the definition of a public benefit entity under FRS 102.
## **1.2 Going concern**
These financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis.
The Trustees therefore consider that the Charity holds sufficient reserves for the going concern basis to be appropriate.
## **1.3 Basis of consolidation**
The statement of financial activities and balance sheet consolidate the financial statements of the Charity and its wholly owned subsidiary St Christopher’s (Trading) Limited.
No separate Statement of Financial Activities is presented for the Charity as permitted by Section 408 of the Companies Act 2006 and SORP (FRS102). The net deficit dealt with in the Charity’s Statement of Financial Activities before the distribution from St Christopher’s (Trading) Limited for the year ended 31 March 2025 was £3,376k (2024: deficit £1,308k), and the net deficit dealt with in the Charity’s Statement of Financial Activities after the distribution was £2,173k (2024: net surplus of £159k).
## **1.4 Fund accounting**
## _Restricted income funds_
Restricted funds are funds subject to specific restricted conditions requested by the donors. Where the restriction relates to the purchase of a capital item then the condition will be treated as having been met when the asset is purchased.
## _Unrestricted income funds_
Unrestricted funds comprise accumulated surpluses and deficits on general funds. They are available for use at the discretion of the Board in furtherance of the general charitable objects.
Designated funds are amounts included within unrestricted funds that have been set aside by the Board for particular purposes. Designated funds include:
- **Fixed assets** This reflects the net book value of unrestricted tangible and intangible fixed assets
- **Ward refurbishment** These are designated monies to fund a wards refurbishment at the Sydenham site
- **Strategic Ambitions Fund** This is a designated fund to focus on projects which will expand St Christopher’s charitable impact and to support its long-term sustainability
- **Legacies Fund** To set aside legacies income, when it has been higher than budgeted in a particular year. This money will be drawn down to support future years, when legacies income is lower than budgeted.
Details on the level of funds in each element are provided in notes 15 and 16.
## **1.5 Income**
Income represents the total income receivable during the year comprising donations, legacies, NHS contracts, grants, fees, interest and other income generated during the year.
Legacies must be recognised when the following conditions are confirmed:
- There has been grant of probate
- The executors have established that there are sufficient funds to pay the legacy
- Any conditions attached to the legacy are either within the control of the Charity or have been met.
44
NHS contracts and fees are recognised when it can reasonably be assumed that the Charity is entitled to the income and the amount can be estimated with sufficient reliability.
Income from trading companies arises from sales of goods in charity shops.
## **1.6 Expenditure**
The costs of inpatient care; community care/outpatients; bereavement services; community action; education, research and policy; and raising voluntary income comprise expenditure both directly and indirectly attributable to the activity concerned. Indirectly attributable costs such as physiotherapy and social work have been allocated to activities using an appropriate cost allocation basis.
Support costs have been allocated to activities on the basis of staff time spent. Governance costs, which are charitable, relate to the stewardship of the Charity’s assets, organisational administration and compliance with constitutional and statutory requirements.
## **1.7 Taxation**
St Christopher’s Hospice is a registered charity. Income and chargeable gains, which are applied for charitable purposes, are exempt from liability to direct taxation. Income tax recoverable in respect of donations under Gift Aid, investment income and legacies is included with the income to which it relates.
## **1.8 Capitalisation and depreciation**
Tangible fixed assets are capitalised with a £1k de minimis limit where relevant.
If items are individually less than £1k, but are part of a project greater than £10k (e.g. as part of an agreed budget) then these are also capitalised as part of this project.
Equipment is not capitalised if it is less than £1k per individual item, and purchased on a rolling basis.
Assets under construction are not depreciated. Depreciation and amortisation are calculated to write off the cost of tangible fixed assets on a straight-line basis over the expected useful lives of the assets concerned at the following rates:
|Leasehold buildings:|over the term of the lease|
|---|---|
|Freehold buildings:|2% straight-line basis|
|Freehold refurbishments and fxtures and fttings: 10% straight-line basis||
|Equipment and motor vehicles:|10% to 331⁄3% straight-line basis|
|Motor vehicles:|331⁄3% straight-line basis|
|Intangible assets:|20% straight-line basis|
|Shops dilapidations:|straight line over the length of the shop lease|
## **1.9 Pension schemes**
St Christopher’s Hospice contributes to the St Christopher’s Hospice (1985) Pension Scheme, a defined benefit scheme. The pension scheme is administered by Trustees and is separate from the hospice. See note 19 for further details.
St Christopher’s Hospice also contributes to a defined contribution scheme. Contributions in respect of the year are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities in the year to which they relate.
St Christopher’s Hospice has an arrangement with the NHS that permits members of the NHS final salary pension scheme to maintain their membership when they are subsequently employed by the hospice. The NHS currently provides a subsidy on the contributions payable by the hospice. This subsidy, along with the contribution from St Christopher’s Hospice, are recognised in the Statement of Financial Activities in the year to which they relate.
## **1.10 Operating leases**
Rentals payable under operating leases are charged on a straight-line basis over the term of the lease.
## **1.11 Estimation uncertainty and key judgements**
Key judgements and areas of uncertainty are considered to be any defined pension liability and accrued legacy income. Please refer to note 19 for a detailed review of the relevant assumptions in relation to the defined benefit pension scheme.
Accrued legacy income is calculated on the basis of the valuation of the net estate of each testator, based on management’s best estimate. The source of estimation uncertainty is that the valuation of the estates at a point in time is inherently uncertain and can change significantly over a short period of time.
The carrying amount of legacies accrued (note 11) as at 31 March 2025 was £6,861k (2024: £5,857k).
45
## 2 NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE
|NHS contracts
3 EDUCATION, FEES AND OTHER INCOME
Education
Fees and other income|**2025**
**£’000**
9,987
9,987
**2025**
**£’000**
370
590
960|**2024**
**£’000**
9,357|
|---|---|---|
|||9,357|
|||**2024**
**£’000**
250
418|
|||668|
## 4 GROUP UNDERTAKINGS
Summary of results of group undertakings:
|**2025**
**St Christopher’s St Christopher’s**
**Hospice**
**(Trading) Ltd**
**£’000**
**£’000**
Income
23,950
5,469
Expenditure
(27,199)
(4,315)
(Defcit)/surplus
(3,249)
1,154
Other recognised losses
(127)
–
Distributions
1,203
(1,203)
Net income for the year
(2,173)
(49)
The net assets of St Christopher’s (Trading) Limited were £359k at 31 March 2025.
**2024**
**St Christopher’s St Christopher’s**
**Hospice**
**(Trading) Ltd**
**£’000**
**£’000**
Income
22,246
5,295
Expenditure
(24,700)
(3,828)
(Defcit)/surplus
(2,454)
1,467
Other recognised gains
1,146
–
Distributions
1,467
(1,467)
Net income for the year
159
–|**Group**
**total**
**£’000**
29,419
(31,514)|
|---|---|
||(2,095)
(127)
–|
||(2,222)|
||**Group**
**total**
**£’000**
27,541
(28,528)|
||(987)
1,146
–|
||159|
The net assets of St Christopher’s (Trading) Limited were £408k at 31 March 2024.
St Christopher’s Hospice has one wholly owned subsidiary:
**Company Activity Company number** St Christopher’s (Trading) Limited Operation of charity shops for the hospice 02604519
## **Related party transactions**
During the year the company entered into transactions with related parties. Transactions entered into and balances outstanding are as follows:
46
|**Re-charged to related parties**
Management charge
Salaries
Leasehold depreciation
Other costs
Total
Balance owed at 31 March
5 EXPENDITURE
**Costs of generating funds**
Fundraising and publicity
Trading activities
**Charitable activities**
Inpatient care
Community care/outpatients
Bereavement services
Community action
Education, research and policy
**Total cost of charitable activities**
**Total expenditure**
**Analysis of support costs**
Chief Executive offce and governance
Facilities
IT management
Finance
Workforce|**2025**
**2024**
**St Christopher’s St Christopher’s**
**(Trading) Ltd**
**(Trading) Ltd**
**£’000**
**£’000**
175
138
2,330
2,125
30
34
44
46
2,579
2,343
348
2,251
**Direct**
**Support**
**Total**
**Total**
**costs**
**costs**
**2025**
**2024**
**£’000**
**£’000**
**£’000**
**£’000**
1,868
293
2,161
1,762
4,315
–
4,315
3,828
6,183
293
6,476
5,590
7,365
1,670
9,035
8,599
10,439
2,400
12,839
11,450
795
198
993
891
622
197
819
871
1,179
173
1,352
1,127
20,400
4,638
25,038
22,938
26,583
4,931
31,514
28,528
**2025**
**2024**
**£’000**
**£’000**
302
287
1,027
1,022
1,226
1,197
433
448
1,943
1,730
4,931
4,684|**2025**
**2024**
**St Christopher’s St Christopher’s**
**(Trading) Ltd**
**(Trading) Ltd**
**£’000**
**£’000**
175
138
2,330
2,125
30
34
44
46
2,579
2,343
348
2,251
**Direct**
**Support**
**Total**
**Total**
**costs**
**costs**
**2025**
**2024**
**£’000**
**£’000**
**£’000**
**£’000**
1,868
293
2,161
1,762
4,315
–
4,315
3,828
6,183
293
6,476
5,590
7,365
1,670
9,035
8,599
10,439
2,400
12,839
11,450
795
198
993
891
622
197
819
871
1,179
173
1,352
1,127
20,400
4,638
25,038
22,938
26,583
4,931
31,514
28,528
**2025**
**2024**
**£’000**
**£’000**
302
287
1,027
1,022
1,226
1,197
433
448
1,943
1,730
4,931
4,684|**2025**
**2024**
**St Christopher’s St Christopher’s**
**(Trading) Ltd**
**(Trading) Ltd**
**£’000**
**£’000**
175
138
2,330
2,125
30
34
44
46
2,579
2,343
348
2,251
**Direct**
**Support**
**Total**
**Total**
**costs**
**costs**
**2025**
**2024**
**£’000**
**£’000**
**£’000**
**£’000**
1,868
293
2,161
1,762
4,315
–
4,315
3,828
6,183
293
6,476
5,590
7,365
1,670
9,035
8,599
10,439
2,400
12,839
11,450
795
198
993
891
622
197
819
871
1,179
173
1,352
1,127
20,400
4,638
25,038
22,938
26,583
4,931
31,514
28,528
**2025**
**2024**
**£’000**
**£’000**
302
287
1,027
1,022
1,226
1,197
433
448
1,943
1,730
4,931
4,684|
|---|---|---|---|
||||2,343|
||||2,251|
||||**Total**
**2024**
**£’000**
1,762
3,828|
||||5,590|
||||8,599
11,450
891
871
1,127|
||||22,938|
||||28,528|
||||**2024**
**£’000**
287
1,022
1,197
448
1,730|
||||4,684|
Support costs have been allocated to activities on the basis of staff time spent. Included in the costs above are governance costs of £127k (2024: £146k).
47
## 6 NET INCOME
|**Net income is stated after charging/(crediting)**
Auditors’ remuneration: audit fee
Auditors’ remuneration: tax and tagging compliance services
Auditors’ remuneration: prior year
Auditors’ remuneration: pension
Operating lease rentals: land and buildings
Operating lease rentals: vehicles and equipment
Depreciation and amortisation
Interest receivable
7 STAFF COSTS
Salaries and wages
Social security costs
Pension costs (see note 19 below)
Staff costs of the Charity
Staff costs of trading activities, which includes pension costs of £99k (2024: £91k)|**2025**
**£’000**
39
5
(16)
9
845
73
839
(496)
**2025**
**£’000**
17,162
1,764
1,356
20,282
2,509
22,791|**2024**
**£’000**
36
6
(1)
9
797
91
772
(620)|
|---|---|---|
|||**2024**
**£’000**
15,348
1,552
1,229|
|||18,129
2,288|
|||20,417|
Two payments were made under a voluntary severance scheme this year (2024: £Nil).
The average number of employees during the year (excluding bank) was:
|**Head count Head count**
**2025**
**2024**
Inpatient care
86
90
Community care/outpatients
145
135
Bereavement services
17
14
Community action
13
14
Education, research and policy
12
9
Fundraising
19
14
Other hospice (includes support staff)
131
128
Charity shops
77
71
500
475
The number of employees whose earnings fell within the band:
£60,000 to £69,999
£70,000 to £79,999
£80,000 to £89,999
£90,000 to £99,999
£100,000 to £109,999
£110,000 to £119,999
£120,000 to £129,999
£130,000 to £139,999
£140,000 to £149,999
£150,000 to £159,999
£160,000 to £169,999
£170,000 to £179,999|**FTEs**
**2025**
80
122
11
11
9
16
105
67
421
**2025**
26
7
2
3
1
3
–
–
–
–
2
1|**FTEs**
**2024**
82
114
10
12
7
13
102
61|
|---|---|---|
|||401|
|||**2024**
15
2
4
1
1
–
1
–
1
1
–
–|
Pension contributions of £367k (2024: £220k) were paid in respect of these employees.
The Board of Trustees consider the key management personnel to be the Executive Team of 7.3 FTEs (2024: 7 FTEs) and the total benefit paid to the key management personnel was £960k (2024: £831k).
48
## 8 BOARD OF TRUSTEES
## **Remuneration and reimbursed expenses**
No remuneration was paid to members of the Board during either year. Expenses reimbursed to Trustees totalled £525 (2024: £420). £24k was incurred in respect of recruiting Trustees (2024: £15k).
St Christopher’s Hospice paid £3,623 (2024: £3,529) for Trustee Liability Insurance for its Trustees.
St Christopher’s Hospice also paid £4,234 (2024: £4,032) for indemnity insurance for the Trustees of the St Christopher’s Hospice (1985) Pension Scheme.
## **Donations from Trustees**
The Trustees have donated a total of £8k (2024: £14k) during the year, of which £6k was restricted to St Christopher’s CARE (2024: £5k).
## 9.1 TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS
||**Freehold**|**Freehold**|**Equipment**|**Leasehold**|**Assets**||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||**land and**|**refurb-**|**and motor**|**land and**|**under**||
||**buildings**|**ishment**|**vehicles**|**buildings**|**construction**|**Total**|
||**£’000**|**£’000**|**£’000**|**£’000**|**£’000**|**£’000**|
|**Group**|||||||
|**Cost**|||||||
|At 1 April 2024|13,192|3,786|2,076|546|12|19,612|
|Additions|12|321|542|149|437|1,461|
|Disposals|–|–|(173)|–|–|(173)|
|At 31 March 2025|13,204|4,107|2,445|695|449|20,900|
|**Depreciation**|||||||
|At 1 April 2024|3,971|3,758|1,120|469|–|9,318|
|Amount provided|263|16|404|123|–|806|
|Disposals|–|–|(173)|–|–|(173)|
|At 31 March 2025|4,234|3,774|1,351|592|–|9,951|
|**Net book values**|||||||
|At 31 March 2025|8,970|333|1,094|103|449|10,949|
|At 1 April 2024|9,221|28|956|77|12|10,294|
|**Charity**|||||||
|**Cost**|||||||
|At 1 April 2024|12,872|3,786|2,034|466|12|19,170|
|Additions|12|321|544|59|437|1,373|
|Disposals|–|–|(173)|–|–|(173)|
|At 31 March 2025|12,884|4,107|2,405|525|449|20,370|
|**Depreciation**|||||||
|At 1 April 2024|3,840|3,758|1,088|399|–|9,085|
|Amount provided|257|16|396|30|–|699|
|Disposals|–|–|(173)|–|–|(173)|
|At 31 March 2025|4,097|3,774|1,311|429|–|9,611|
|**Net book values**|||||||
|At 31 March 2025|8,787|333|1,094|96|449|10,759|
|At 1 April 2024|9,032|28|946|67|12|10,085|
Caritas House, the freehold property in Orpington, was revalued by Jones Lang Lasalle in April 2014. Under the transitional arrangements of FRS 102, the valuation at the date of transition is considered to be the deemed cost of this property.
Additions of £537k within the ‘Assets under construction’ and ‘Freehold refurbishment’ categories were funded by the DHSC Capital Grant described in Note 15.
49
## 9.2 INTANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS
|**Group and charity cost**
**Cost**
At 1 April 2024
Additions
Disposals
At 31 March 2025
**Depreciation**
At 1 April 2024
Amount provided
Disposals
At 31 March 2025
**Net book values**
At 31 March 2025
At 1 April 2024
10 INVESTMENTS
**Group**
**2025**
**£’000**
At 1 April 2024
25,357
Additions
4,529
Disposals
(3,742)
Increase/(decrease) in market value: realised
33
(Decrease)/increase in market value: unrealised
(160)
26,017
Movement in cash balance
(8,649)
At 31 March 2025
17,368
**Funds managed by Cazenove Capital Management**
UK equities
1,125
International equities
10,751
Bonds
1,104
Property
694
Alternatives: other and commodities
1,716
Cash
1,181
16,571
**Other investments**
Bank deposits
797
Investment in subsidiary undertaking
–
797
**Total investments**
17,368|**2025**
**2024**
**£’000**
**£’000**
687
656
102
62
–
(31)
789
687
577
536
33
72
–
(31)
610
577
179
110
110
120
**Group**
**Charity**
**Charity**
**2024**
**2025**
**2024**
**£’000**
**£’000**
**£’000**
19,362
25,757
19,762
4,184
4,529
4,184
(2,892)
(3,742)
(2,892)
(39)
33
(39)
1,185
(160)
1,185
21,800
26,417
22,200
3,557
(8,649)
3,557
25,357
17,768
25,757
1,019
1,125
1,019
9,750
10,751
9,750
1,399
1,104
1,399
714
694
714
1,848
1,716
1,848
1,703
1,181
1,703
16,433
16,571
16,433
8,924
797
8,924
–
400
400
8,924
1,197
9,324
25,357
17,768
25,757|**2024**
**£’000**
656
62
(31)|
|---|---|---|
|||687|
|||536
72
(31)|
|||577|
|||110|
|||120|
|||22,200
3,557|
|||25,757|
|||1,019
9,750
1,399
714
1,848
1,703|
|||16,433|
|||8,924
400|
|||9,324|
|||25,757|
The historical cost of the investments managed by Cazenove Capital Management is £14,171k (2024: £13,575k). The Charity owns all of the 400,000 £1 ordinary shares in St Christopher’s (Trading) Limited.
50
## 11 DEBTORS
|11 DEBTORS|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
||**Group**|**Group**|
**Charity**|**Charity**|
||**2025**|**2024**|
**2025**|**2024**|
||**£’000**|**£’000**|
**£’000**|**£’000**|
|Trade debtors|3,122|924|
3,120|923|
|Legacies receivable|6,861|5,857|
6,861|5,857|
|Sundry debtors, prepayments and accrued income|1,614|1,757|
1,242|1,387|
|Amount due from St Christopher’s (Trading) Limited|–|–|
348|2,251|
||11,597|8,538|
11,571|10,418|
|12 CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR|||||
||**Group**|**Group**|
**Charity**|**Charity**|
||**2025**|**2024**|
**2025**|**2024**|
||**£’000**|**£’000**|
**£’000**|**£’000**|
|Trade creditors|77|449|
77|408|
|Payroll taxes and social security|701|634|
701|633|
|Other creditors and accruals|1,591|1,148|
1,255|925|
|Income received in advance|105|120|
105|120|
||2,474|2,351|
2,138|2,086|
|13 LEASE COMMITMENTS|||||
|The Group leases a number of properties, motor vehicles and offce equipment under||operating|leases.||
||||**Motor**|**Motor**|
||||**vehicles**|**vehicles**|
||**Land and**|**Land and**|
**and offce**|**and offce**|
||**buildings**|**buildings**|
**equipment**|**equipment**|
||**2025**|**2024**|
**2025**|**2024**|
||**£’000**|**£’000**|
**£’000**|**£’000**|
|**Operating leases payments to be made**|||||
|Within one year|303|632|
58|45|
|In two to fve years|440|1,044|
62|83|
|Over fve years|–|–|
–|–|
||743|1,676|
120|128|
Land and buildings lease commitments are based on whichever is earlier out of the lease end date and the lease break-point date.
## 14 FINANCIAL COMMITMENTS
As at 31 March 2025, the following approved commitments were authorised by the Board of Trustees:
- Up to £2.9 million in respect of ward refurbishments. This will be funded through unrestricted, restricted and designated funds.
51
## 15 RESTRICTED FUNDS
|15 RESTRICTED FUNDS||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||**Balance**|**Income**|**Expenditure**|**Transfers**|**Balance**|
||**1 April**||||**31 March**|
||**2024**||||**2025**|
||**£’000**|**£’000**|**£’000**|**£’000**|**£’000**|
|3 IS Project|11|49|60|-|-|
|Bromley Homelessness Project|17|-|13|-|4|
|Candle|102|40|132|15|25|
|Carers|17|20|20|-|17|
|Caritas House Building Fund|1,035|-|27|-|1,008|
|Celebrating Nursing|27|5|6|-|26|
|Community Action|-|39|38|-|1|
|Community of Nursing|28|6|5|(24)|5|
|Dementia-focused training and education|40|-|15|-|25|
|Developing the practice of palliative nursing|7|-|1|-|6|
|DHSC Capital Grant|-|537|-|(537)|-|
|Education (bursaries)|21|17|25|-|13|
|Home Care|27|20|19|(12)|16|
|Lavender Room|28|-|2|-|26|
|Leadership development training|30|-|11|-|19|
|Nightingale Fellowship hardship bursaries|60|-|27|-|33|
|NIHR Research|-|115|94|-|21|
|Patient equipment/premises extension|161|-|-|(91)|70|
|Research: Stern Legacy|199|-|47|-|152|
|Room hoists|-|80|-|-|80|
|Support for St Christopher’s CARE|390|-|236|-|154|
|Wards refurbishment project|70|78|-|-|148|
|Women in Fellowship Fund|28|16|-|-|44|
|Other funds|63|128|109|44|126|
|**Total restricted funds**|2,361|1,150|887|(605)|2,019|
Caritas House Building Fund: this fund was originally established to cover the cost of building Harris HospisCare premises and offices. It now reflects the net book value of Caritas House.
Community Action: supporting older, frail and socially isolated people within the local community.
Community of Nursing: shared learning and support for newly qualified nurses.
DHSC Capital Grant: grant from the Department of Health and Social Care (administered by Hospice UK). Transfers within this fund relate to capital expenditure during the year.
Nightingale Fellowship: hardship bursaries to nurses to assist with living costs.
NIHR Research: grants from the National Institute for Health and Care Research to support research projects.
Patient equipment/premises extension: an amount left in a Will with a specific request for expenditure to be spent on either patient equipment or a premises extension. Transfers within this fund relate to capital expenditure during the year.
Research: Stern Legacy: St Christopher’s Hospice was the beneficiary of a restricted legacy for use in research into myeloma and end of life palliative care. Accordingly, the funds have been used to establish a research project into myeloma at the Cicely Saunders International research institution and are being used to fund other research projects in end of life care.
Support for St Christopher’s CARE: this fund is restricted to supporting expenditure for St Christopher’s CARE in its first years of operating.
Wards refurbishment project: relates to grant funding in respect of our inpatient unit wards refurbishment.
52
## 16 DESIGNATED FUNDS
|16 DESIGNATED FUNDS|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|||**Balance at**|**New desig-**|**Balance at**|
|||**1 April**|**nations and**|**31 March**|
|||**2024**|**transfers**|**2025**|
|||**£’000**|**£’000**|**£’000**|
|Fixed assets||9,369|751|10,120|
|Strategic Ambitions Fund||3,160|(1,709)|1,451|
|Wards refurbishment||1,690|347|2,037|
|Legacies Fund|ww|4,387|–|4,387|
|||18,606|(611)|17,995|
Fixed assets: this reflects the net book value of unrestricted tangible and intangible fixed assets.
Strategic Ambitions Fund: this is a designated fund to focus on projects which will expand St Christopher’s charitable impact and to support its long-term sustainability.
Wards refurbishment: these are designated monies to fund a wards refurbishment at the Sydenham site.
Legacies Fund: to set aside legacies income when it has been higher than budgeted in a particular year. This money will then be released to general funds in future years if legacies income is lower than budgeted.
## 17 ANALYSIS OF GROUP NET ASSETS BETWEEN FUNDS
|17 ANALYSIS OF GROUP NET ASSETS BETWEEN FUNDS|||
|---|---|---|
|Restricted income
Unrestricted income
_Designated_
_General_|**Fixed**
**Current**
**assets**
**assets**
**Creditors**
**£’000**
**£’000**
**£’000**
1,008
1,011
-
10,120
7,875
–
17,368
9,625
(2,474)
28,496
18,511
(2,474)|**Total**
**£’000**
2,019
17,995
24,519|
|||44,533|
53
## 18 CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2024
|**Unrestricted**
**Restricted**
**funds**
**funds**
**restated**
**Total**
**Total**
**£’000**
**£’000**
**Income from**
Donations and gifts
4,482
353
Legacies
6,473
62
Charitable activities
_NHS funding_
9,357
–
_Education, fees and other income_
668
–
Other trading activities
_Income of trading company_
5,295
–
_Investment income_
851
–
**Total income**
27,126
415
**Expenditure on**
Raising voluntary income
1,762
–
Trading company
3,828
–
5,590
–
Charitable activities
_Inpatient care_
8,509
90
_Community care/outpatients_
11,325
125
_Bereavement services_
820
71
_Community action_
797
74
_Education, research and policy_
785
342
22,236
702
**Total expenditure**
27,826
702
**Net (expenditure)/income before transfers**
(700)
(287)
**Transfer between funds**
83
(83)
**Net (expenditure)/income before**
**other recognised gains and losses**
(617)
(370)
**Other recognised gains/(losses)**
Actuarial (losses) on defned beneft pension scheme
–
–
(Losses)/gains on investments: realised
(39)
–
Gains/(losses) on investments: unrealised
1,185
–
**Net movement in funds**
529
(370)
**Total funds at 1 April 2023**
43,865
2,731
**Total funds at 31 March 2024**
44,394
2,361|**2024**
**2023**
**restated**
**Total**
**Total**
**£’000**
**£’000**
4,835
4,508
6,535
7,168
9,357
9,013
668
678
5,295
5,005
851
368
27,541
26,740
1,762
1,552
3,828
3,383
5,590
4,935
8,599
7,819
11,450
9,957
891
687
871
708
1,127
1,214
22,938
20,385
28,528
25,320
(987)
1,420
–
–
(987)
1,420
–
(127)
(39)
479
1,185
(1,292)
159
480
46,596
46,116
46,755
46,596|**2024**
**2023**
**restated**
**Total**
**Total**
**£’000**
**£’000**
4,835
4,508
6,535
7,168
9,357
9,013
668
678
5,295
5,005
851
368
27,541
26,740
1,762
1,552
3,828
3,383
5,590
4,935
8,599
7,819
11,450
9,957
891
687
871
708
1,127
1,214
22,938
20,385
28,528
25,320
(987)
1,420
–
–
(987)
1,420
–
(127)
(39)
479
1,185
(1,292)
159
480
46,596
46,116
46,755
46,596|
|---|---|---|
|||26,740|
|||1,552
3,383|
|||4,935|
|||7,819
9,957
687
708
1,214|
|||20,385|
|||25,320|
|||1,420
–
1,420|
|||(127)
479
(1,292)|
|||480
46,116|
|||46,596|
54
## 19 PENSION SCHEMES
## **a St Christopher’s Hospice (1985) scheme**
The hospice operates a pension scheme, the St Christopher’s Hospice (1985) Pension Scheme, which provides benefits based on final pensionable salary. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the hospice. The scheme was closed to new members in April 2002 and closed to future accruals from March 2010.
Contributions are charged to the Statement of Financial Activities so as to spread the cost of pensions over employees’ working lives. The pension charge for the year was £Nil (2024: £Nil).
## _**Triennial valuation**_
The contribution rates are determined by a qualified actuary on the basis of triennial valuation. The results of the last triennial valuation at 31 March 2022 showed that the value of the scheme’s assets was £12,279k (2019: £10,413k) and that this represented 111% (2019: 94%) funding level, with a surplus of £1,226k (2019: deficit of 695k). The actuary confirmed that the minimum funding requirement regulations had been met.
In accordance with the actuarial valuation, the hospice has agreed with the scheme Trustees that it will meet the expenses of the scheme and levies payable to the Pension Protection Fund.
## _**FRS (Financial Reporting Standard) 102: Disclosure Report**_
FRS 102 is fully effective for accounting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2015. The Statement of Financial Activities, the balance sheet and the disclosures in the notes to these financial statements meet the requirements of FRS 102. The major assumptions used by the actuary are shown below.
_Present values of defined benefit obligation, fair value of assets and defined benefit asset (liability)_
||**Period**|**Period**|**Period**|
|---|---|---|---|
||**ended**|**ended**|**ended**|
||**31 March**|**31 March**|**31 March**|
||**2025**|**2024**|**2023**|
||**£’000**|**£’000**|**£’000**|
|Fair value of plan assets|7,546|8,280|8,612|
|Present value of defned beneft obligation|(6,686)|(7,406)|(7,597)|
|Unrecognised surplus|(860)|(874)|(1,015)|
|Defned beneft asset to be recognised|–|–|–|
_Reconciliation of opening and closing balances of the defined benefit obligation_
||**Period**|**Period**|
|---|---|---|
||**ended**|**ended**|
||**31 March**|**31 March**|
||**2025**|**2024**|
||**£’000**|**£’000**|
|Net defned beneft obligation at start of period|7,406|7,597|
|Interest expense|354|360|
|Acturial losses|(713)|(195)|
|Benefts paid|(361)|(356)|
|Defned beneft obligation at end of year|6,686|7,406|
55
## _Reconciliation of opening and closing balances of the fair value of plan assets_
||**Period**|**Period**|
|---|---|---|
||**ended**|**ended**|
||**31 March**|**31 March**|
||**2025**|**2024**|
||**£’000**|**£’000**|
|Fair value of plan assets at start of period|8,280|8,612|
|Interest income|397|409|
|Actuarial losses|(770)|(385)|
|Contributions by the Charity|–|–|
|Benefts paid|(361)|(356)|
|Fair value of plan assets at end of period|7,546|8,280|
The actual loss on the plan assets over the period ended 31 March 2025 was £373k (2024: a gain of £24k). _Defined benefit costs recognised in net (expenditure)/income_
|_Defned beneft costs recognised in net (expenditure)/income_||||
|---|---|---|---|
||**Period**|**Period**||
||**ended**|**ended**||
||**31 March**|**31 March**||
||**2025**|**2024**||
||**£’000**|**£’000**||
|Net interest cost|–|–||
|_Defned beneft costs recognised in other gains and losses_||||
||**Period**|**Period**||
||**ended**|**ended**||
||**31 March**|**31 March**||
||**2025**|**2024**||
||**£’000**|**£’000**||
|Return on plan assets (excluding amounts included in net interest cost): (loss)|(770)|(385)||
|Experience gains and losses arising on the plan liabilities: (loss)|(6)|(17)||
|Effects of changes in the demographic and fnancial assumptions underlying||||
|the present value of the plan liabilities: gain|719|212||
|Effects of changes in the amount of surplus that is not recoverable||||
|(excluding amounts included in net interest cost): gain|57|190||
|Total amount recognised in other gains and losses|–|–||
|_Assets_||||
||**Period**|**Period**|**Period**|
||**ended**|**ended**|**ended**|
||**31 March**|**31 March**|**31 March**|
||**2025**|**2024**|**2023**|
||**£’000**|**£’000**|**£’000**|
|Diversifed growth assets|2,895|4,082|5,225|
|Debt instruments|3,292|2,104|–|
|Liability-driven investments|1,165|1,900|2,913|
|Cash and cash equivalents|194|194|474|
|Total assets|7,546|8,280|8,612|
None of the fair values of the assets shown above include any direct investments in the hospice’s own financial instruments or any property occupied by, or other assets used by, the hospice.
56
_Assumptions_
|_Assumptions_||||
|---|---|---|---|
||**Period**|**Period**|**Period**|
||**ended**|**ended**|**ended**|
||**31 March**|**31 March**|**31 March**|
||**2025**|**2024**|**2023**|
||**%pa**|**%pa**|**%pa**|
|Discount rate|5.80|4.90|4.85|
|Infation (RPI)|3.40|3.40|3.50|
|Allowance for revaluation of deferred pensions of RPI or 5% p.a. if less|3.40|3.40|3.50|
|Allowance for pension in payment increases of RPI or 5% p.a. if less|3.20|3.20|3.20|
|Allowance for commutation of pension for cash at retirement|0.75|0.75|0.75|
The mortality assumptions adopted at 31 March 2025 imply the following life expectancies at age 65 years:
|Male retiring in 2025:|21|
|---|---|
|Female retiring in 2025:|23|
|Male retiring in 2045:|22|
|Female retiring in 2045:|25|
As the pension scheme is in surplus, there is not expected to be any contributions paid by the hospice to the scheme for the period commencing 1 April 2024.
## _Calculation of pension scheme asset_
|Triennial valuation surplus in 2022
Less amounts paid by charity 2022-23
Surplus not recognised|**£’000**
1,226
(125)|
|---|---|
||1,101|
## **b St Christopher’s defined contribution scheme**
The St Christopher’s defined contribution scheme was set up in September 2001. In April 2010, the St Christopher’s Personal Pension (2010) defined contribution scheme was established and members of the existing defined contribution scheme transferred to this new scheme with effect from January 2011. The contribution of the hospice was on average 21% for former members of the St Christopher’s (1985) scheme and 5% for all other members, which represented a total charge for the year of £674k (2024: £622k) to the St Christopher’s GPP (2010) defined contribution scheme.
## **c NHS Pension Scheme**
Details of the scheme are provided in note 1.9. The contribution of the hospice was 14.38%, which was offset by a 29% subsidy on the contribution. This represented a net charge for the year of £781k (2024: £698k).
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## LOOKING TO **THE FUTURE**
**In last year’s Annual Report and Accounts from St Christopher’s, we reported on the first year of our strategy for 2023 to 2026. Two years in, we have made significant progress on our objectives and are on track to achieve considerable results in all areas of our work, as you will have seen from the report on our progress on pages 9 to 27.**
We have a lot to look forward to for the future, as we enter the final year of our current strategy and start to plan our next strategic phase.
First and foremost, Steve Smith joined as our new Chief Executive at the end of June 2025. Steve was previously Chief Executive of Havens Hospices and is well known and highly respected in the hospice sector. Both myself and the whole Board look forward to working with him and welcoming him to our community.
St Christopher’s has always remained true to Dame Cicely Saunders’ legacy as a pioneering and progressive hospice serving the people of south east London. Steve is an innovative and ambitious leader who will be an ideal fit for St Christopher’s going forward. The hospice sector faces many challenges at the moment, and that requires strong leadership in the hospice and the sector. I am confident we shall have this in Steve.
As we look forward to this new phase, I also want to express my thanks to the fantastic leadership team at St Christopher’s, who have driven the organisation forward over the past 12 months. In particular, I want to thank Jan Noble, who as Interim Chief Executive provided inspirational leadership through a period of inevitable uncertainty.
As the next financial year unfolds, we will start our planning for our next strategic period. This will see us building on the strengths and the successes of the current strategy, with our organisational values as our steadfast guide for the path we will take, and the care and support of our community, diverse and personalised, at the heart of everything that we do.
To achieve this, tackling inequalities, including the ability to access end of life care and bereavement support within our community, will remain central to our work and our mission as an organisation. As is shown in our report on progress from pages 9 to 27, this area of our work underpins so much of the care and support we provide, and is central to our mission, as a hospice and a charity.
In our work to break down barriers and improve accessibility to all, we need to look inwards, as
**“I must pay tribute to the outstanding work carried out – day in, day out – by everyone at St Christopher’s to make sure we provide holistic, personalised and compassionate care to all our patients and their families, here in the hospice and in their own homes.”**
well as outwards. This is why we will embark on a comprehensive training programme for all our staff and volunteers, to ensure we are all skilled and knowledgeable about diversity and belonging. This is so we can make sure we speak to everyone, we include everyone, and open our doors to anyone who might need us.
With our work on tackling inequalities remaining a solid foundation for how we operate as an organisation, we will also continue to take a leading role, as the first modern hospice, in shaping palliative care for the better, nationally and internationally. Our work towards influencing the NHS 10 Year Plan, in championing the importance of end of life care within the broader national health provision and the need for greater, sustained investment and funding, will continue and grow over the next strategic phase, building on all that we have achieved so far, through partnerships and collaboration, with the voices of our community at the heart of everything that we do.
The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill has recently had a third reading in the Commons, which has been passed by a small majority onto the next parliamentary phase, which will see it go under review in the House of Lords. We continue to monitor the process closely, take all opportunities to make our voice heard and to influence policy-makers around the complex and highly sensitive nuances and resource considerations that a potential new law could mean for the hospice sector. At the same time, we remain acutely aware of the many concerns and emotions our staff and volunteers are facing throughout this process, and we will remain absolutely committed to supporting them each step of the way. The Board and the Executive Team will continue to have an open-door policy to anyone who wishes to ask questions, express their concerns or who may need support as the legislation progresses.
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**Our chefs, like Michael, provide a variety of meals throughout the day for all tastes**
As I mention our staff and volunteers, I must pay tribute to the outstanding work carried out – day in, day out – by everyone at St Christopher’s to make sure we provide holistic, personalised and compassionate care to all our patients and their families, here in the hospice and in their own homes. With all my heart, thank you, all of you.
The demand for our services will continue to grow in the coming years, so the need for highly skilled, committed and passionate individuals and teams, whether in clinical or non-clinical roles, will also continue to grow, and will be fundamental to St Christopher’s being able to deliver
care and support to our community, as it always has since 1967.
I am proud to be able to chair this Board, and to be able to speak of the great successes St Christopher’s achieves year-on-year so consistently. Here’s to another challenging, rich and inspiring year.
NEIL GOULDEN Chair of Trustees
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## **THANK YOU** TO ALL OUR SUPPORTERS
**We are, as always, immensely grateful to the individuals, corporate sponsors and trusts who continue to support us at St Christopher’s.**
- 5 Stone Buildings
- Addington Court Golf Club Veterans
- Aitch & Aitch
- Alan De Maid Estate Agents
- Alexandra Residents Association
- Amphlett Lissimore
- Anglo American Foundation
- Arch of Steel Conclave No. 445
- Asset Risk Consultants
- Avenue Hall Lodge No. 5910
- Baltic Exchange
- Banham Foundation Limited
- Barton Trust
- Belvedere Trust
- Ben Oakley Gallery
- Berry Palmer & Lyle Limited
- Currey & Co LLP
- Cutting Remarks Hairdressers
- Dixie Rose Findlay Charitable Trust
- Dixon Wilson
- Dr Friedrich Stock Memorial Trust
- Dulwich Folk Dance Club
- Enterprise Mobility
- Ernst & Young
- Farrer & Co LLP
- Fb Coales No 4 (Family)Trust
- Fiore & Bloom Florists
- Foresters Friendly Society
- Forsters LLP
- Future Directions Financial Services Ltd
- Generation Foundation
- Golden Eagle Line Dance Club
Limited
- Laura’s Light
- Lawson Family Trust
- Link Group
- Lodge of Rectitude No.5882
- Maristow Charity
- Masonic Charitable Foundation
- Maurice Turnor Gardner LLP
- Maybrey Precision Castings Ltd
- Mazzini Garibaldi Foundation
- Merriman Charitable Foundation
- Metropolitan Police (Hayes) Bowls Club
- Michelmores LLP
- Mishcon De Reya LLP
- Mr & Mrs A M Hendry Charitable Trust
- National Lottery Community Fund
- Birketts LLP
- Blythe Hill Tavern
- Boodle Hatfield LLP
- Branching Out
- Broadfield Law UK LLP
- Brook Besor Chapel - IMF
- Bulls Head Hotel
- C Brewer & Sons Ltd Trust
- Carefree Singers
- Charles Russell Speechlys LLP
- Chatterton Arms
- Christ Church - Chislehurst
- Christ Church Beckenham
- Churchill Foundation
- Collyer Bristow LLP
- Croham Hurst Lodge 3968
- Croydon Petanque Club
- Croydon Relief In Need Charities
- Goldman Sachs International
- Grand Charitable Trust of the Order of Women Freemasons
- Great Causes II
- Grips Tyres & Wheels Ltd
- Hammersmith Apollo Limited
- Harapan Trust
- Harwoods Of London
- High Elms Golf Club
- Hither Green Crematorium
- Holy Trinity with St John’s Penge
- Homesdale Allotment Association
- IdentityE2E
- Irwin Mitchell
- Jet’s Charitable Trust
- John Laing Charitable Trust
- John Lamb Hill Oldridge
- Lancashire Insurance Company (UK)
- North Downs Orbit Club
- Oakfield Lodge Number 7011
- Old Askean Masonic Lodge No. 6986
- Old Wilsonian Lodge No 6602
- Orpington Road Runners
- PaulFest
- Payne Hicks Beach LLP
- Peckarmans Wood & Crescents Wood Residents’ Association
- Pentex Ltd
- Petts Wood Runners
- PWC Foundation
- Rawlinson & Hunter
- Ray Jones Roofing Ltd
- RJ and AH Daniels Charitable Trust
- Ros Harding Trust
- Roseberys Auction House
- Rotary Club of Beckenham
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- Rotary Club of Bromley
- Rotary Club of Bromley Borough
- Rotary Club of West Wickham
- Rothschild & Co
- RSM UK Foundation
- Sainsbury’s - Locksbottom
- Sainsbury’s - Penge
- Selco Builders Warehouse
- Shanly Foundation
- ShareGift
- Sinclair Gibson LLP
- Sotheby’s
- Southwark Irish Pensioners Project
- Squire Patton Boggs Charitable Trust
- St Francis & Old Askean Charity Golf Society
- St James’s Place Foundation
- St John The Divine
- St Paul’s Parish Church Crofton
- St Mildred’s Parish Church
- Stagecoach Catford Bus Garage
- Stanley Smith (UK) Horticultural Trust
- STEP - Society of Trust & Estate Practitioners
- Stonehage Fleming Family & Partners Ltd
- Streeter Marshall
- Taylor Wessing
- TEAM LEWIS Foundation
- The Albert Hunt Trust
- The Ali Cowden Golf Day
- The Anthony and Elizabeth Mellows Charitable Settlement
- The Anthony Gold Solicitors Charitable Trust
- The Anthony Hart Charity Trust
- The B & P Glasser Charitable Trust
- The Barleycorn Trust
- The Barnes Ouzounian Foundation
- The Bothwell Charitable Trust
- The Broadoaks Estate Residents Association
- The Burdett Trust for Nursing
- The CA Redfern Charitable Foundation
- The Cecil Rosen Foundation
- The City Bridge Foundation
- The Co-op Local Community Fund
- The Coutts Charitable Trust
- The Douglas-Morris Charitable Trust
- The Elizabeth & Prince Zaiger Trust
- The Elizabeth Frankland Moore and Star Foundation
- The Eversley Charitable Trust
- The February Foundation
- The Florabella Trust
- The Freddie Green and Family Charitable Foundation
- The G D Herbert Charitable Trust
- The Goldsmiths’ Company
- The Graham Child Charitable Trust
- The Grove Bridge Club
- The Hayes (Kent) Trust
- The Health Foundation
- The Hill Public House
- The Hit or Miss
- The Horner Family Charitable Fund
- The Hospital Saturday Fund
- The Institute of Our Lady of Mercy
- The John Horseman Trust
- The K.P Ladd Charitable Trust
- The Lord and Lady Lurgan Trust
- The Mackie Foundation
- The Mageni Trust
- The Margaret and David Walker Trust
- The Michael and Anna Wix Charitable Trust
- The Michael Cowan Foundation
- The Milton-Lloyd Charitable Trust
- The Morgan and Sarah Charitable Trust
- The Oddfellows
- The Percy Bilton Charity
- The Peter and Olive Ward Charitable Trust
- The Robert Holman Memorial Trust
- The Screwfix Foundation
- The Timothy Franey Charitable Foundation
- The Weald Of Kent Golf Club
- The William Allen Young Charitable Trust
- The Woodroffe Benton Foundation
- Universal Music Operations Limited
- Victoria Miro Gallery
- Walder Wyss Ltd
- Wandle Lodge No. L2699
- Wates Foundation
- West Kent Golf Club
- West Wickham Allotment Association
- West Wickham Lodge No. 2948
- Westminster Waste Ltd
- Wilsons Solicitors LLP
- Withers LLP
- Women in Fellowship.
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## MEET **THE TEAM**
## EXECUTIVE TEAM
STEVE SMITH Chief Executive
TOM ABBOTT Director of Income Generation and Communications
AMANDA MAYO Care Director
JAN NOBLE Director of Quality and Innovation
GUY PERYER Director of Education and Research
DR JOY ROSS Lead Consultant in Palliative Care
JOHN VICKERS Director of Finance and Corporate Services
## TRUSTEES
NEIL GOULDEN Chair
ELEANOR BROWN Vice Chair
VIVIAN BAZALGETTE Trustee
GLENDA BONDE Trustee
NICK DIAMOND Trustee
SIMON HALL* Trustee
TONY HUNTER Trustee
RHODA IRANLOYE* Trustee
IAN JUDSON Trustee
DANIEL KELLY OBE Trustee
ANN KENRICK OBE* Trustee
JOHN KING Trustee
DAVID LOCKYER** Trustee
PHILIPPA MARTINELLI* Trustee
CATHERINE MCDONALD Trustee
SATVINDER REYATT Trustee
DEEPTI TOWNSEND Trustee
*Appointed 1 April 2025 **Appointed 1 November 2024
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## PATRON
HRH PRINCESS ALEXANDRA
## AMBASSADOR
TOM ALLEN
## PRESIDENT
LORD IAN MCCOLL
## VICE PRESIDENTS
MORGAN JONES MBE RODNEY BENNION OBE DR CATHERINE DENT DR TYRRELL EVANS DR GILLIAN FORD CB DAME SHEILA HANCOCK OBE DAME PAULINE HARRIS DBE DL JOHN RHODES BARBARA RICHARDSON COLIN RUSSELL Deceased July 2024 RUTH SAUNDERS
## COMPANY SECRETARY
## REGISTERED OFFICE
51-59 Lawrie Park Road Sydenham London SE26 6DZ
## BANKERS
HSBC Bank plc 165 Fleet Street London EC4A 2DY
## INDEPENDENT AUDITOR
Moore Kingston Smith LLP, 9 Appold Street London EC2A 2AP
REGISTRATION NUMBERS
Registered charity number 210667
Registered company number 00681880
VAT registration number 523613961
## A SPECIAL THANK YOU
We’d like to remember and acknowledge the significant contribution of Colin Russell to St Christopher’s. Colin first became involved with St Christopher’s in the early 2000s and his support enabled us to launch initiatives including the school engagement programme that has been emulated internationally. His kindness and generosity continue to make a difference to the people we support.
JOHN VICKERS
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## END OF LIFE CARE **THAT’S ALL ABOUT YOU**
## **Sydenham site**
51-59 Lawrie Park Road, Sydenham, London SE26 6DZ
## **Orpington site**
Caritas House, Tregony Road, Orpington BR6 9XA
Telephone **020 8768 4500** Email **info@stchristophers.org.uk stchrishospice stchristophers.org.uk**
Registered charity 210667 registered with the Fundraising Regulator Registered company number 00681880 © St Christopher’s Hospice October 2025
If you would like this information in a different format, such as audio tape, braille or large print, or in another language, please speak to the Communications team on 020 8768 4500 or email communications@stchristophers.org.uk.
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