A London hospice has been recognised as a Compassionate Workplace by Compassionate Communities UK (CCUK).

Harlington Hospice has been given a Compassionate Workplace Award by CCUK, following an assessment of its compassionate culture and future plans to further this work.

CCUK trustee Steve Crabb, who presented the Harlington Team with its accreditation said, “How our workplaces respond to colleagues living with or caring for someone with a serious illness or someone grieving is critical to health and wellbeing. We get most of our support  during these challenging times from our communities, including where we work.

“Our Compassionate Workplace Award recognises organisations where staff feel that the organisation cares and shows compassion and is committed to equity and inclusion in the context of workplace experience. Our award isn’t about an organisation being perfect or having everything in place but a staging post celebrating what is already good, combined with a commitment to continually improve. 

“A Compassionate Workplace is a key domain within the Compassionate City Charter, recognising the power of the whole of civic life in improving the experiences of people living with issues relating to serious illness, death, dying, loss and care giving. The Compassionate Communities Board were really impressed with the commitment shown by Harlington Hospice and I was delighted to be able to present the award.”

Steve Curry, CEO of Harlington Hospice said: “It is wonderful to be recognised for the work we have done as an organisation, to become a Compassionate Workplace. As a hospice, we have a clear commitment to be compassionate to all our staff at every level of the organisation and as a community, as this enables our teams to support our patients and their families at the end of their lives. We are very proud of the entire team and this reward is a recognition of every single member of our staff.”

CCUK was set up to work with communities to build compassion as a major value in life, manifesting in the way we treat each other and the world around us. It provides a variety of services relating to the public health approach to the spectrum of chronic disease management, disengaged members of the community, and into end of life care including bereavement.