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.
Are hospices gloomy places?
People’s expectations are often different to the reality they find when they come through our doors. We’re keen to encourage visitors, whether they be future patients or families and friends. We work hard to ensure that the hospice is far from gloomy. Our visitors often tell us that, contrary to their expectations, Prospect Hospice doesn’t feel like a gloomy place at all.
Are hospices places people go to die?
Yes, but this isn’t the whole truth. The people we care for are typically in the last year of their life. People who are admitted to our inpatient unit are often very unwell, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they are going to die at this time - more than half return home. Sometimes patients will come for a period of respite care or to help them to manage their symptoms.
Are you open all the time and are there strict visiting hours?
We are open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, for patients and their families and friends. You can visit at any time – we have two lodges for families to stay overnight should they wish, and can also arrange for an extra bed or recliner chair to be placed by the patient’s bed should this be preferred.
Are your nurses Macmillan nurses?
No. Locally, the nurses and other staff funded by Macmillan Cancer Care all work primarily at the Great Western Hospital.
Are your medical staff fully trained?
All our doctors and nurses are fully qualified and in most cases have additional palliative care qualifications. If our doctors don’t yet have specialist palliative care qualifications, they will be studying towards them.
Are you still the Prospect Foundation?
We are Prospect Hospice. We used to be Prospect Foundation, but the name changed many years ago and is still often used affectionately by many people across our community who remember the work we did historically under that name. Similarly, we are not The Prospect, Prospect House or even The Prospect Hospice, all names that are used affectionately by people locally for who we are – Prospect Hospice.
Do patients have to come to you or do you come to them?
Both. There are up to 16 beds in our inpatient unit at the hospice in Wroughton and we also provide care in people's homes. Our Prospect@Home service provides care throughout the local community and we also work with care homes.
Do you care for children?
We provide end-of-life care services for adults aged 18 years and over. However, our Family Support Team, through their work with the families of people we care for, will support children as they come to terms with the illness of a parent or guardian, and this extends into bereavement. The nearest children’s hospices to us are Julia’s House in Devizes, Wiltshire, Helen and Douglas House in Oxfordshire, and Naomi House in Hampshire.
Does the hospice only support patients?
Our patients are our foremost consideration, but they are not the only people who benefit from our services. We have a range of services specifically designed to help families and carers in coping with the challenges that the illness of a loved one brings. These include family support, practical planning, advocacy and children’s advice. The service extends to providing information on legal issue such as wills, lasting powers of attorney and parental guardianship. At least as many family members and carers access the support that is available through our services each year, reflecting our belief that, while we are here to care for patients, their families and carers often need our support too.