Creating a Cohesive Fundraising Vision for the Southern Hospice Group Merger

“It has been fantastic to work alongside the Philanthropy Company during a time of significant strategic upheaval for the organisation. The Philanthropy Company’s support has enabled us to navigate our way through uncharted fundraising waters whilst ensuring our donor relationships remained at the heart of all our work.”

Katie Cotton, Director of Philanthropy & Communications

Challenge

St. Barnabas Hospice, Chestnut Tree House and Martlets recently merged to ensure secure and improved adults’ and children’s hospice care. The impact of this partnership will support anyone, adult or child, facing a life-limiting illness over a geographical reach across Brighton, Sussex and S E Hampshire. Working in partnership will allow us to achieve transformational and integrated palliative care across a wider area of Sussex.

The fundraising challenge was to create a unified philanthropic programme following the merger, combining the strengths of each hospice into a coherent plan, identifying opportunities and supporting the Major Giving team to sustain fundraising.  

Scoping, providing guidance and implementation support was sought to take advantage of the merger and maximise the likelihood of long-term success.

Response

In a two-phase project, Phase 1 focused on assessing feasibility, developing a prospect pipeline, and shaping a Case for Support, alongside key stakeholder interviews following the merger decision, and presentations to the Board and Income Generation Committee. It provided strategic recommendations for long-term Major Giving fundraising to integrate this work into the hospice team structure.

Phase 2 delivered essential fundraising tools, including an events plan template, stewardship framework, and gift pyramid analysis. A series of workshops covered supporter journeys, fundraising themes, proposal writing, and donor engagement strategies. Key outputs, such as a Case for Support document and a proposal template, were developed to enhance major giving efforts. We worked closely with corporate, philanthropy, and trust & foundation teams to ensure a holistic fundraising approach.

Impact

During this critical merger transition, we helped the hospices engage key supporters and secure high-value gifts, including a £1 million gift. We provided strategic insight through a focused fundraising opportunities report for 2024–25, alongside practical recommendations. To strengthen internal capability, we delivered fundraising workshops, developed key resources, and embedded tools such as pipelines, stewardship frameworks, and proposal templates into daily practice. Our Gift Pyramid process and pipeline development identified income gaps and guided bold fundraising decisions. Senior-level support was provided throughout via regular calls, project work, and donor-focused sessions.