At Prospect Hospice, we provide outstanding, personalised and compassionate care for everyone in Swindon, Marlborough and the surrounding areas affected by a life-limiting illness, completely free of charge. For more than 40 years, we’ve been a dedicated, non-hospital, end-of-life care service for patients and their loved ones - around the clock, every day of the year. Our mission is to ensure that anyone can access the best possible expert care whenever and wherever they need it – whether at the hospice or in their own home. As a charity, we only exist because of the generosity and support of our amazing local community.
Find out about the range of end-of-life care services that we offer to patients and their families. These delivered free of charge and are designed to provide compassionate, personalised support during every stage of a life-limiting illness in every kind of care setting, to anyone who needs it.
We couldn’t do what we do without considerable support from our local community. Find out all the different ways in which you can support Prospect Hospice, including fundraising, volunteering and purchasing from our shops. All contributions are greatly appreciated and enables us to deliver care that is free of charge to our patients and their families.
Our café sits at the heart of our hospice in Wroughton and serves a range of delicious home cooked meals to suit all tastes. Whether you're looking to catch up with friends over lunch or relax with coffee and cake, our Heart of the Hospice café has you covered.
Whether shopping with us in person or online, or donating your pre-loved goods, we thank you for supporting us through our shops where you help to raise around £2million a year for Prospect Hospice.
We pride ourselves on being a great place to work and we're always looking for outstanding people to join our team at the hospice across all areas of the charity.
Prospect Hospice is the leading provider of education and training for end-of-life care in Swindon and north Wiltshire. Working closely with you, our colleagues within partner organisations, we want to ensure that the very best care is available to everyone facing the end of life. This is why we provide education and development opportunities, all of which aim to encourage learning and build confidence in end of life care and support.
Sometimes it can be the little things that make the difference between coping with a life-limiting illness and feeling overwhelmed.
When Linda Davis, who lives in Penhill, was caring for her partner she found the Carers Café at Prospect Hospice a lifeline.
“Caring for someone can be exhausting, and being able to sit down with a cup of tea and talk to other people in the same situation helped so much,” says Linda.
“You can’t moan about your partner to family or friends without feeling really guilty, but people who are also carers understand what you are going through. Your life becomes so swamped by looking after your partner that you find there’s nothing left of your own. Being able to have a moan, get things out of your system, and even have a laugh or a joke about what you are going through helps so much. And there were talks after each café session where you all learned more about the journey you’re all on, and you can ask questions, so that really helped too.”
But after the loss of her partner, Linda was to face more tough times. She fell and broke her hip badly and, while she was being treated, scans showed that she had lung cancer, and it was terminal.
“I’d been having bereavement counselling from Prospect Hospice, which helped so much, but now I had another reason to need support from them,” says Linda, who is 65-years-old.
“My daughter, Clare, her husband and their four children had moved in with me temporarily, and Clare became my carer. But there were practical problems – because of my broken hip I had to sleep downstairs in the utility room, and space is limited in there so I needed a short bed.
“Prospect Hospice was marvellous in sorting out the practical things I needed, and arranged for me to have a short hospital bed and a new wheelchair, fitted with special supports. That meant I could not only get out of bed, but also get comfortable in the wheelchair so I could sit in the front room and even go out to Coate Water with Clare. “It has also meant that I can remain in my own home, which is what I want.”
Daughter Clare Baker says Prospect Hospice’s single point of contact system has freed her up from administrative tasks like chasing prescriptions or trying to get through to call centres, and allow her to get on with what she wants to do – give her mum the loving care she deserves.
“In the beginning I could spend hours on the phone, trying to get hold of medicines or physiotherapy or the surgery – I remember one call I made ended up in Portsmouth. It was so stressful and frustrating.
“But once Prospect Hospice got involved, everything was smooth. All I have to do is call them, and I know that whatever we need will be sorted quickly, often the same day.
“Now I can do what I want to do – focus on being a proper carer for my mum.”
Find out more about how you can support the work of the hospice with a regular gift here.