Abstract

The presentation will describe the setting up of a Community Interest Company alongside a Hospice.

We aimed to set up a Community Interest Company to explore a potential new income stream. The CIC also provided the opportunity to deliver projects that were complementary to our core purpose but without overt investment from the Hospice.

We took various projects, such as a schools bereavement link project (offering advice, training to school staff and support for children facing serious illness or bereavement), which had grown beyond the remit and capacity of the Hospice Counselling Services into the Community Interest Company so that these services were available locally to be bought in.

• ▶ Many local schools are making service level agreements with the CIC and requesting that we develop services, such as group work for children affected by loss.

• ▶ Building partnerships locally has increased opportunities for the Hospice fundraising department.

• ▶ Volunteer counsellors now have opportunities for progression- this has improved recruitment and retention.

• ▶ We are building resilience and awareness of response to loss in the local community; the people benefiting from the projects are the patients, carers and relatives that will access the Hospice in the future.

• ▶ Managing the change with a new initiative and communicating the potential benefits across the Hospice has taken time.

• ▶ Keeping partner organisations on board as the project transferred to the CIC has been important, as has communicating the relationship between the Hospice and CIC.

While Hospices are specialists in bereavement care the skill set that comes with supporting people emotionally is transferable to many situations and expertise in loss, Hospice values and approach is welcomed within other organisations.

Our experience will be of interest to any Hospice considering setting up a Community Interest Company as a potential income stream.