'There was no money, no premises, no nurses, no doctors' - hospice celebrates founders who overcame it all

“There was no money, no premises, no nurses, no doctors…… but a huge number of people needing what a hospice could provide.”

That was the situation Councillor Kitty Sharples faced in 1981, when she began to campaign for hospice care in central Lancashire, according to former Trustee John Turner.

Now, as St Catherine’s Hospice in Lostock Hall winds up its 40th birthday year celebrations, staff look back the people who made it all happen.

The background

Building a hospice from nothing echoed the actions of Dame Cicely Saunders around two decades earlier. Widely acknowledged as the founder of the modern hospice movement, nurse and social worker Cicely used a £500 legacy as seed funding for the UK’s first purpose-built Hospice - St Christopher's, London - in 1967. It was the first time that pain and symptom control was managed alongside compassionate care, teaching and clinical research. From a standing start, how could central Lancashire follow this same path?

Kitty’s nephew Mick Higgins knew that starting from scratch would not hold her back. He said she was “a very determined woman and when she first spoke about her dream of setting up a hospice here, we knew it was something she would follow through until the end.”

Fortunately, Kitty Sharples did have one thing in abundance, as she discovered when she held a public meeting; the support of the local community, and other people who shared her vision and commitment. That included wholehearted involvement from building services engineer and Councillor Cliff Hughes, who would go on to be awarded an MBE and become the Hospice’s Chairman for 30 years, later being honoured in 2024 as Founder and Life President.

Cliff, who passed away in 2025, began supporting St Catherine’s Hospice in 1982. He and his wife Rita took on the challenge of raising the funds needed to open the Hospice and negotiated the purchase of Lostock Hall Convalescence Hospital from the NHS, a milestone that laid the foundation for the Hospice’s future. He also steered the charity through major renovations, the launch of new clinical services, and pioneered fundraising campaigns including the UK’s first hospice lottery.

This typified the vision of the Hospice’s Founders, who shaped St Catherine’s into the organisation it is today. And it still serves the communities who raised it up and championed it from the day it opened its doors on April 29, 1985.

Proud

Chief Executive Lynn Kelly said: “All of our founders are in our thoughts as we reach the end of our 40th anniversary celebrations at St Catherine’s Hospice. So, 29th April will always be celebrated as our Founders Day.

“Despite the tough economic environment we face as a modern hospice, we believe the founders would be extremely proud of their legacy. We are supporting more and more patients each year. For example, last year we admitted over 440 patients in our In-Patient Unit, the most in our history. From 2024 to 2025, we supported 1,853 patients with life-shortening conditions, a large proportion of which were cared for in their own homes.

“On this Founders Day, it's an opportunity to reflect on the patients and their families who inspire us every day, and say thank you to our staff, volunteers, professional contacts, supporters and community partners for keeping our founders’ vision alive and growing.”