LincolnX Featured: St Barnabas Hospice – Delivering their mission through innovative fundraising

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LincolnX Featured takes a look at our LincolnX members each week, profiling their firm and highlighting key developments within their business. 

Now in its thirty eighth year, St Barnabas Hospice is one of the largest local charities supporting thousands of families across the county each year and works to provide outstanding palliative end of life specialist care.

Offering free services for patients, their families and carers, St Barnabas aim to raise £6m this year alone to ensure they can continue to meet the growing demand for their specialist care and support, with only half of the services being funded by the NHS.

The local community, businesses, social groups, schools and individuals across Lincolnshire have shown incredible passion and commitment over the past thirty-eight years, with their support being fundamental for the hospice to deliver their mission – ensuring all individuals facing the end of their life in Lincolnshire receive dignified, compassionate care when they require, in and where they ask for it.

Photo from: St Barnabas Hospice

Supporting the charity is a workforce of over 300 employees across clinical, admin, finance, income generation and support services and over 1000 volunteers who collectively work together to support over 10,500 people each year.

St Barnabas is made up of eight different buildings including two specialist in patient facilities and six wellbeing centres offering a range of clinical and holistic therapies, a countywide team of Community Nurses who deliver care within patients’ home settings, a welfare benefits advice service, a Dementia Care service in collaboration with Dementia UK and Lincolnshire County Council and over 10 volunteer led bereavement groups each month.

As a leading charity, St Barnabas like to push boundaries with not just their clinical care but within their income generating teams.

Over the years the fundraising team have adapted TV shows into fundraisers from Strictly Ballroom to ITV Dating show – Take me out.

Six years ago, when Colour Runs were taking the UK by storm, St Barnabas partnered with local event supplier Running Imp to host Lincolnshire’s first Colour Dash – this is now their flagship event and over the past five years has raised a phenomenal £720,915 for Hospice Care.

Photo from: St Barnabas Hospice

Additionally, the hospice has partnered with local Gin experts, Pin Gin at Bottomley Distillers to launch their own Gin – Est.1982 Bramble, with all profits being donated back to the Hospice this year.

(Use Pin Gin’s discount code: NEW15 for 15% off any of the range.)

In collaboration with Pin Gin, the Hospice have launched an innovative and fun ‘at home fundraiser’ – Gin and Jammies.

The idea is quite simple, you set a date, virtually meet with your family and friends, set the dress code as ‘Jammies’ and have fun whilst sipping Gin; all they ask for is a donation to the ‘Gin and Jammies’ host in support of the Hospice.

Register for your own fundraising pack here.

Photo: Rachel London Photography

Veronica McBain, Head of Fundraising and Marketing said:
“I’ve been at St Barnabas heading up the Fundraising and Marketing Team for almost a decade now and I’ve seen incredible growth and development across the organisation in that time.

“2020 is shaping up to be a really exciting year for St Barnabas, over the past year the team have worked hard to secure some amazing collaborations which all are starting to come to fruition.”

“This includes being charity partner for the Lincoln IMP Trail due to hit the city in the summer, the work with Pin Gin for our new Gin and Jammies fundraiser, our Adventures in St Barnabas Challenge which includes our own bespoke Mount Toubkal Trek, some incredible corporate partners who really are going the extra mile and the start of a national awareness campaign as we embark on some developments across the county to name a few!

“I encourage you, if you’re looking for a charity to work with, consider St Barnabas, from the fundraising opportunities to volunteering to providing skills development, we are open to a conversation about how we can work together.”

Locals may have also seen a sea of blue in Lincoln Castle last Easter – this was a brand new in memory appeal that the team delivered – in return for a donation you could purchase a Forget Me Not, handmade at local blacksmiths – The Old Smithy.

Over 2500 flowers were bought in memory of loved ones raising over £100,000 for St Barnabas to continue providing care and support to more families.

The Hospice also has 26 Charity Shops across the county, offering ranges of pre-loved and new goods from clothing to kids toys to fabulous furniture.

They even work with Lincoln Prison on a community upcycling initiative where furniture that can’t be sold is transformed into beautiful shabby chic pieces looking for a new home.

Photo from: St Barnabas Hospice

During these unprecedented times, St Barnabas are looking at virtual ways to fundraise, including their recently launched Isolation Motivation with ‘Mr Motivator’.

Keep a look out for fundraising events on their Facebook Page.

How can your business get involved with St Barnabas?

A Corporate Partnership with St Barnabas Hospice gives your employees the opportunity to be creative, learn new skills and demonstrate their ability to meet challenges and take on new responsibilities.

The hospice’s Corporate and Community Fundraisers will be there to offer support and guidance with any fundraising activity.

They have a range of ideas that suit all levels of corporate support; additionally, they can work with you to develop tailored activities and events which you and your colleagues can enjoy from quiz’s and bake offs, to skydives and mud runs.

As a partner, St Barnabas offers fantastic promotional opportunities.

Throughout the year you will be endorsed on their social platforms, of which engage over 20,000 people, their website, newsletters and e marketing campaigns.

Click Here to find out more.