CONSULTANCY EXPERTS
Our experts have been chosen to provide our Hospice members with support and strategic direction in several areas.
Including; income generation, retail operations, investment review and governance.
Consultant: The Charity Retail Consultancy
The 2021 accounts of Charitable Hospices, collated by Hospice UK, denotes that the total average amount of profit derived from over 2,500 Hospices shops across the UK is 7%, with a total retail profitability of £70m, however, the bricks and mortar marketplace, as a whole, continues to be under pressure with diminishing returns, but help is at hand.
HQP has partnered with a bespoke, results orientated consultancy, the Charity Retail Consultancy (CRC), which was founded in 2010 by Jayne Cartwright. Jayne now works alongside Vicki Burnett, and both have worked in the charity retail sector for over 30 years and bring a wealth of experience in managing local, regional and national chains, for example: St Gemma’s Hospice in Leeds, Save the Children UK, The Children’s Society and YMCA England.
CRC helps charity shops to develop their retail operation, improve their product offer, their people and grow their profitability. Support is given across a wide range of services to help tackle the difficult challenges of e-commerce, green credentials, social media and shops management.
- “We asked the Charity Retail Consultancy to do a complete review of our retail portfolio – they were able to do this very promptly and the report was ready soon after their site visits. I was impressed with the thoroughness of the report which gave us clear recommendations to take the business forward. I would highly recommend any charity looking for experienced retailers who know where to look, who can get under the skin of your business and give you clarity on what to do next.”
Sarah Thompson, CEO, St. Clare Hospice
Key Consultancy Service Options
- Strategy & planning
- Reviews – of any or all elements of a retail and/or trading operation
- Feasibility studies
- Training, learning and development
- Recruitment support at all levels and stages of appointment (e.g. advertising/sharing vacancies, developing role profiles, managing the recruitment process, etc.)
- Audits & investigations
- eCommerce support: start up to development
Testimonial
- Mentoring and coaching
- Management information & productivity
- Visual merchandising support
- HR support
- Interim cover for senior roles and specific issues
- Site searches
- Ongoing advice and governance
To find out more contact David Hales
Quote exclusive HQP Consultancy code CRC21 for bespoke great service and value.
Consultant: db associates
As we move out of the pandemic, it is clear that the pressures on the established Hospice business model that were evident even before March 2020, are now greater than ever. Whilst the Government money for the sector helped mask the impact of Covid, at least in England, many hospices are projecting significant deficits for the current year.
The latest Hospice Accounts report shows that the return on investment, for each pound spent, from hospices voluntary and earned income streams continues to fall. In 2012 it was £2.61; in 2020 it was £2.20. Moreover, total hospice legacy income has been falling since 2018. As research by Legacy Futures has shown, the sector is increasingly losing market share to other charities that have been more pro-active in marketing gifts in wills. Unsurprisingly, many hospices are now looking at alternative commercial income generation activities. But there is also scope to improve performance in existing revenue streams.
To assist Hospices in their approach to income generation, HQP has partnered with David Burland, an experienced fundraising consultant, who will deliver practical advice around strategy and operations. David has worked in the voluntary sector for over 30 years, bringing vast experience from his time as a Director of Fundraising at local and national levels, as well as a Hospice Chief Executive, a Trustee and a Director of several charity-related enterprises. In recent years, he has advised a number of hospices around their income generation activities and strategies.
- “David engaged with a wide range of staff and trustees and took time to learn about our culture and approach to fundraising. His many years of experience in proved invaluable in benchmarking our current performance, seeing where our strengths are and identifying areas we could improve. I happily recommend him to others.”
Andrew Ryde, CEO, Oakhaven Hospice
Key Consultancy Service Options
- A full review of all your voluntary fundraising streams, covering individual giving and in memoriam, legacies, corporate, trusts, community and events
- Lotteries and new earned income opportunities can also be included, or looked at separately
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- An intensive one-day workshop to help provide a health check of current performance and identify areas of potential improvement
- Assist in recruitment/training of fundraising personnel
- Mentorship support for Hospice Directors of Fundraising or Income Generation
To find out more contact David Hales
Quote exclusive HQP Consultancy code DBA21 for bespoke great service and value.
Consultant: db associates
Good governance is fundamental to a Hospice’s success. It combines ensuring compliance with the law and relevant regulations with promoting a culture in which everything works towards fulfilling the vision. Moreover, good governance involves building a supportive but appropriately challenging relationship with the Executive Team. The model below encapsulates this.
Completing a governance review demonstrates your commitment to run your Hospice according to best practice and to build trust in your organisation. Moreover, regulators, commissioners and funders increasingly want to see some form of governance accreditation as part of their assessment of an organisation’s suitability as a partner or beneficiary.
To support Hospices in their ongoing governance, HQP has partnered with David Burland and Digi-Board, to deliver governance reviews and board evaluations. David has worked in the voluntary sector for over 30 years, bringing in-depth experience from his time as a Hospice Chief Executive, as a Trustee and a Director of several charity-related enterprises. He has also undertaken many governance reviews for charities, facilitated strategic workshops for Boards and Executive Teams and run trustee governance training sessions.
- “The Trustees were keen to understand how our new strategy related to the challenges facing the hospice sector in these unpredictable times. After over a year of not meeting face to face and with several new additions, they also wanted to be updated on their duties and responsibilities. David was an excellent lead facilitator for these aspects of the day. His knowledge and experience of the hospice sector and charitable governance proved of real benefit and really helped ensure the success of our time together.”
Lynn Kelly, CEO St. Catherine’s Hospice, Preston
Digi-Board is a leading provider of online governance reviews for charities and not-for-profit organisations. Their sophisticated tool is based on the principles of the Charity Governance Code but also considers other important areas such as safeguarding. Users can rate current performance, identify areas of improvement and add their own comments and views to provide a detailed and multi layered analysis of governance performance. There is also the chance to benchmark your results against all previous users of the tool. A bespoke, in-depth report and recommendations can also be provided.
- “The Digi-Board tool and resulting report have proved an extremely effective way to review our governance practice and identify areas of current strength, as well as those we can improve further. The quality and depth of data that comes out is very helpful, as is having an independent, expert perspective to interpret the results and make recommendations. I would certainly encourage others to undertake a Digi-Board review.”
Clare Gallie, CEO, Lewis-Manning Hospice Care
Key Consultancy Service Options
- Conduct workshops that look at how to develop practical approaches for Trustees and senior staff to better operate in partnership
- In depth reviews of key governance documentation, including your constitution, Board and committee terms of reference, role descriptions and schedule of delegated authority
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- Training around Trustee roles and responsibilities
- Access Digi-Board, the on-line governance tool, which makes the process of governance reviews easier, more thorough and more cost efficient and enables sector benchmarking as well as a bespoke report
To find out more contact David Hales
Quote exclusive HQP Consultancy code DBAG21 for bespoke great service and value.
Consultant: Paul Mitchell
The 2021 accounts of the Charitable Hospices, collated by Hospice UK, denotes that the total amount of money invested by the Hospice community stands at £663 million and with ever more scrutiny from the regulator and the public, it is paramount that Hospices acquire the most from their investments.
To assist Hospices in this challenging environment HQP has partnered with a specialist investment review consultant, Paul Mitchell, who will deliver Hospices with a clear, concise and cost-effective method of reviewing their investment arrangements.
Paul has 30 years of experience working in the charity teams of several leading investment houses and can provide insight into the relationship required between charities and their Fund Managers to ensure that the stewardship of their valuable assets is undertaken at the highest possible level.
- "The Trustees and Finance Committee were most impressed with Paul’s experience, knowledge and straightforward talk in respect to risk profiling, running a beauty parade, review and update of ‘Statement of Investment Principles’ in addition to some strategic advice about responsible investing and aligning policies. The whole project was executed very professionally, which provided considerable ‘peace of mind’ for the Trustees and Senior Management Team. We would not hesitate to recommend Paul and his services to any charity going through a similar process."
Max Caunhye, Finance Director, St. Barnabas / Chestnut Tree Hospices
Key Consultancy Service Options
- Review of the current investment strategy to ensure that it is fit for purpose
- Review of the current Statement of Investment Principles (SIP) to ensure that it reflects the strategy, is charity commission compliant, and is written in a clear and concise manner to which an investment manager can run a portfolio without ambiguity
- Review of the incumbent investment manager(s) to ensure that they are performing to expectations and adhering to the details of the SIP
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- If required, the full management of a competitive tender. This would include selecting firms to tender, sending out RFPs and collating responses, attending the tender day when firms present to the board/subcommittee and guiding the board on how to score the candidates
- If a change of manager is agreed, helping with the transfer process
- If required being retained on an on-going basis to help monitor the investment manager and generally be available for guidance on investment matters
To find out more contact David Hales
Quote exclusive HQP Consultancy code PMIR21 for bespoke great service and value.
Consultant: The Green Consultancy
Sustainability and Net Zero Carbon are now central to the operation of all organisations. In particular, The Greener NHS programme requires all NHS Trusts and their suppliers to develop Net Zero Carbon strategies.
Soaring energy costs provide a further incentive to drive down energy consumption and therefore carbon emissions. However, it should be born in mind that over 90% of hospices’ carbon emissions are in their supply chains – and so present a greater challenge to manage.
In addition, energy and carbon are increasingly subject to mandatory management and reporting – such as Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) and Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS). Phase 3 of the latter is expected to become more onerous – probably incorporating Net Zero Carbon and the details are expected to be released in April 2022.
HQP has partnered with The Green Consultancy (TGC) and John Treble’s team to provide top quality solutions to all these challenges – tailored to the precise needs of each hospice.
TGC has been providing such services for 30 years and clients include 130 NHS Trusts. It is currently developing a Net Zero Carbon strategy for NHS Blood & Transplant Trust.
- "Carol Somper, TGC Sustainability Director, is clearly an expert in her field and really wanted to understand our particular organisation and ethos. She was able to provide real life examples of the sort of work that would help clarify the work that would form part of our audit. We felt listened to, respected, and understood. From this initial meeting we knew we were in safe hands with Carol leading the team that would undertake the Environmental Audit. We feel that we didn’t just commission auditors but partners in this essential work.”
Diane Kent, Operations Manager, Quartet Community Foundation
Key Consultancy Service Options
- Net Zero Carbon strategy, decarbonisation plans and long-term support to reach your targets
- All aspects of energy consultancy – policy, strategy, project identification, feasibility studies, project implementation, BMS optimisation, monitoring and targeting, training, behaviour and culture change, etc
- Legal compliance – ESOS, EUETS, CHPQA, SECR, etc
- Standards – ISO 50001, 14001, 90001, etc
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- Software tools – surveying: Energy Initiator®, project management: Energy Activator® and e-learning: Be EnergyTM
- Sustainability – health checks, waste minimisation, environmental management systems, environmental audits, procurement, sustainable construction, sustainable development goals
- World-class energy and facilities management services outsourcing consultancy