News

Join us next Thursday, 18th December for our Lights of Love festive open evening – get your tickets here.

Wander through our enchanting forest of 100 Christmas trees – each beautifully decorated and sponsored by our amazing supporters.

Meet Santa, enjoy festive stalls, sip on delicious refreshments, and soak up the music of a live brass band.

Bring the whole family – even the furry ones!

Tickets are selling fast! Children under 12 and dogs go FREE, and adult tickets are just £3.50.

Tickets must be booked in advance – don’t miss out on this magical night!

Grab your tickets now: https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/booking/select/kngzwbgdylox

Across the weekend, our annual Christmas parties brought together dozens of Derian families to celebrate this very special time of year.

Our annual party for our younger children and their families was an absolute blast this year at Academy at Worden! There was so much festive fun and lots of smiles all round.

And our Lodgers celebrated in style at Chorley Football Club – they had the BEST time!

A huge thanks to everyone who helped make the events a success.

Influencer family @itsthehillarys stopped by on Friday (5 December) with piles of presents for our children and young people just in time for Christmas.

TikTok’s favourite family – Mark, Ellie, Marcus, and baby Marco – took a tour of the hospice, learned more of what we do here, and met some of our children and young people – including Amelia and Macy.

Head over to their TikTok where you can watch their visit to Derian House: https://www.tiktok.com/@itsthehillarys

Tickets are still available to book for Lights of Love this Friday.

Featuring your favourite Christmas carols performed by The Rawstorne Singers as well as music from the Singitbig choir, and more! Refreshments and mince pies will be available to enjoy following the service and our popular selection of Derian House charity Christmas cards will also be on sale at the event.

Come along and support Matthew Valentine, 16, and his family, who will be switching on the Cathedral’s Christmas lights.

We have introduced a small ticket price* this year to help keep this Christmas tradition alive, and we are deeply grateful for your generosity.

Book your tickets here: Lights of Love Carol Service at Blackburn Cathedral event tickets from TicketSource

*If you would prefer to donate on the night, or support us in another way, the ticket price can be removed and tickets can still be booked for free. 

HOSPICE OPENING & CLOSING DAYS

• The hospice is open throughout with stay and plays all week.

MONDAY 24th

• O Christmas tree, o Christmas tree! United Utilities are delivering two Christmas trees – one for outside of reception and one to go into the Sensory Garden (this may happen today or tomorrow!)
• Urmson are also here today carrying out fire damper testing.
• This morning, our children and young people are painting in the messy room and later today they will be watching a film in the cinema.
• The Play and Wellbeing Team will also be delivering play in the community.
• Swimming lessons are taking place this afternoon.

TUESDAY 25th

• Playgroup takes place this morning in the Seaside Room.
• Our in-house CYP will be relaxing with sensory stories and massage this morning before an afternoon of festive crafts including advent calendar and Christmas card making.
• Derian babies will be enjoying baby massage on community visits today.
• Jo and Ted will be visiting for Pet Therapy at 1:30pm.
• The electric meter is being replaced in the Blackburn shop today.
• GOOD LUCK to the Derian Dynamos who are competing in the pentathlon multi-sports competition today!

WEDNESDAY 26th

• Our in-house children and young people will be taking part in some messy, sensory fun this morning before making a splash in the hydrotherapy pool this afternoon.
• Rachel Toner will be visiting for our weekly sing-a-long.
• The bereaved dads group are visiting The Flower Bowl this evening to play a game of crazy golf.

THURSDAY 27th

• Jump Children’s Charity are visiting us today to treat our in-house CYP and five lucky families to a memory making photography experience.
• We’ll be wrapping up warm and playing on Sunshine Park this morning before cosying up with Tac Pac and stories.
• NEET day care is taking place today in The Lodge.
• The project manager from Innova is visiting to scope the work on replacing the hoist system in The Lodge.
• Take the opportunity to relax your mind and leave your emotional challenges to one side for half an hour. Join John in the cinema from 4pm for guided meditation.
• Paul Woodward is meeting with Lucy and some of the bereaved dads this evening to carry out some filming for a small spin off documentary to ‘The Little Things.’

FRIDAY 28th

• Our in-house children and young people will be making winter bird feeders this morning before heading out on a trip in the bus this afternoon.

• Derian babies will be enjoying baby massage at home today.

SATURDAY 29th

• The youth family drop-in session takes place today.
• We’ll be baking in the dining room this morning and taking a winter walk to Astley Park later in the day before cosying up with a story.

SUNDAY 30th

• Happy St. Andrews Day!
• Our in-house children and young people will be having fun in the hydrotherapy pool this morning and taking part in some St. Andrew’s Day inspired crafts this afternoon including design their own tartan.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

• Thanks so much for sending your news this week. If you would like to share with the rest of Derian what your department is up to between 1 – 7 December, please send an email to rabbett@derianhouse.co.uk before Thursday 27 November.

Have a great week everyone!

Last week, our new Derian Values sessions for staff kicked off in the Seaside Room, as we look to reflect where we are on our values journey.

We want to take time to review our values, so that they match where Derian House is now – and how they can be fit for the future.

As the values are for staff, by staff – and are essential to everything we do – we want as many colleagues involved as possible, along with our Board of Trustees and volunteers.

If you didn’t get chance to visit the first session, please look out for more coming soon. In the meantime, you can fill out the short survey below so that we can grasp a better understanding of what YOU think of the current Derian Values.

Derian Values – Fill out form

“Derian House made it possible for me to spend my special day as a mum as opposed to being a carer. It can be hard to find childcare for a complex child like Oliver, and we are so grateful that we have Derian to help – they went above and beyond.” ✨

There were smiles and happy tears all round as eight-year-old Oliver, who requires round-the-clock care, was able to attend his mum’s wedding with the help of staff from Derian House 💒

Mum Samantha Dolan had just one wedding wish – for all three of her sons to be there as she walked down the aisle at Holland Hall, in Skelmersdale, on Friday 24th October 👰🏼‍♀️

Her son Oliver fell ill at just four weeks old, suffering from meningitis and a hypoxic brain injury. As a result, he struggles with movement and sight, and needs oxygen to breathe due to a chest condition, requiring 24/7 care 🫶

But despite everything, Oliver, now eight, was able to celebrate at the wedding alongside his brothers Jacob and Benjamin, and the rest of the family – with help from two members of our team from the hospice 💫

We’re so glad that we could help make Samantha and Christopher’s very special day even more special, and that they could relax and enjoy it without having to worry 💚

HOSPICE OPENING & CLOSING DAYS

• The hospice is open all week.

MONDAY 17th

• Today is World Prematurity Day and our in-house children and young people will be creating collages using all things purple, the colour associated with World Prematurity Day.
• Popcorn and snacks at the ready, its movie time this afternoon for our in-house CYP!
• Swimming lessons are taking place between 3 – 7pm.

TUESDAY 18th

• Playgroup will be held in the Seaside Room this morning, where our babies and toddlers will be enjoying a morning of music, messy play and fun from 10 – 11:30am.
• Our in-house children and young people will be getting messy with (clean!) mud before making a splash in the hydrotherapy pool this afternoon.
• The Play and Wellbeing Team will be delivering therapeutic play in the community today.

WEDNESDAY 19th

• Rainbow Hub are using the hydrotherapy pool this morning.
• The winter weather has definitely arrived and our in-house children and young people will be making snowflake pictures before warming up this afternoon in their rebound therapy session.
• Music teacher Rachel will be here to entertain us with an hour of music fun.
• Derian babies will be enjoying baby massage at home today.

THURSDAY 20th

• Strike! Today we’re holding a sensory bowling competition for our in-house children and young people.
• We have 10 corporate volunteers from The Acorn Group joining us to help with Christmas preparations.
• The facilities team (minus Sam) are on a Ladder Inspection course here at the hospice.
• This afternoon, our CYP will be taking a walk to Chorley Library to enjoy story time.
• Derian volunteers are representing us at the Anwyl Homes open evening tonight in Warrington. There will be tombola fun and Derian Christmas cards on sale, and a special appearance from Ted the therapy dog.

FRIDAY 21st

• Today is National Gingerbread Day!
• Our children and young people will be exploring using their senses during the morning and making delicious gingerbread biscuits this afternoon.

SATURDAY 22nd

• In-house hydrotherapy is taking place today.
• Denise is hosting the Derian Mum’s retreat today between 10am – 4pm. The mums will be treated to relaxing aromatherapy and exploring crystals, journaling and the moon circle.
• Our in-house CYP will be enjoying sensory stories this afternoon.
• Derian volunteers are representing us at the Preston Marriott Christmas Light Switch On this evening. Our volunteers will be spreading awareness and selling festive chocolate oranges.

SUNDAY 23rd

• We’ll be having fun on Sunshine Park this morning and creating name collage art this afternoon.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

• Thanks so much for sending your news this week. If you would like to share with the rest of Derian what your department is up to between 24 – 30 November, please send an email to rabbett@derianhouse.co.uk before Thursday 20 November.

Have a great week everyone!

Hello everyone, please find below an update on all things Derian House:

1. Thank you to everyone for making me so welcome in my new office in the hospice, I am absolutely loving spending time there, speaking to staff  and volunteers, and seeing our children/young adults and their families, I absolutely love the noise of the corridor!
2. CQC Inspection.  We are still awaiting our draft report, which we are expecting any time in the next couple of weeks.  We will have an opportunity to feedback about any points of the report that we believe to be factually incorrect, before the final report is shared.  I will keep everyone updated as soon as we know more.
3. One of the key things that staff fed back as part of the CQC staff survey was around the use of the Freedom to Speak Up Guardian process, and so we are currently reviewing that and will advise any changes to help support its use going forward.
4. Karen (HR) and Caroline are leading a piece of work on our values, you’ll have received an email inviting you to give some feedback on our current values, and the We Are Derian Forum attendees took part I an exercise today looking at how the values are lived through our work.  There will be lots of opportunity to get involved and determine whether the values are fit for purpose for Derian now and I the future, and your input is essential in that, so please do get involved.
5. We are reviewing the current strategic plan.  This is a 3month project which is being externally facilitated and many of the leaders across the charity will be involved.  In addition we want all colleagues and volunteers to have their thoughts and opinions heard so keep an eye out over the coming weeks about how you can do so.
6. As many of you will know Bridget has decided to retire and will leave her current role at the end of January.  We are keen to keep Bridget connected to the hospice and so we are considering what role Bridget could play going forward.  In terms of filling the Clinical Director role we are taking a few weeks to consider what we will require.
7. We interviewed for a number of roles recently.  We have a new PA for Directors starting soon, and a new HR administrator.  The named nurse role wasn’t filled so we will look at this again in the New Year and we are hoping to appoint to the Director of Children and families role in the next week.
8. It’s that time of year where we are setting next year’s budget.  Please speak to your team managers and Directors about how you can get involved in the budget setting for your area of work.
9. Anthony will be rolling out Vantage training over the next month so please keep an eye open for the invites, this is open to all colleagues and its important everyone knows how to log an incident appropriately.

• And finally… yes… the C word has very much arrived !! We’re all looking forward to a wonderful festive season both in terms of fundraising and creating the most wonderful of memories for our children and families.

Any questions or if you want to have a chat with me at any time, please let me know.

Thanks everyone for all your hard work.

With just 44 days until Christmas, we’re expecting an increase in supporters asking what our families would like as gifts.

This means now is the perfect time to add any last-minute requests to our Derian House Amazon Wish List.

If you would like to request items for the Wish List, please email kerry.salmon@derianhouse.co.uk with the following information:

• Item link
• Quantity needed
• A brief explanation of why the item is beneficial to the Hospice

Our very own Wish Tree is now in Reception. Please spread the word to friends and family!

Supporters are welcome to visit the hospice, take a tag from the tree, purchase the corresponding gift, and return it with the tag attached.

Join us for a night of festive carols and mince pies at our annual Christmas concert at Blackburn Cathedral on the evening of Friday 5 December at 7.30pm.

The service includes festive readings, Christmas carols and performances by The Rawstorne Singers and The Singitbig Choir.

All families, staff, volunteers, and supporters are welcome to attend our Lights of Love Carol Service, however this year we are asking for a minimum suggested donation of £5 per ticket.

We appreciate that Christmas can be an expensive time of year, please give what you can.

Eventura will be migrating the Q drive to Azure this Wednesday 29^th October at 9.30am.  During this process, the Q drive will be unavailable for about one hour. Before the migration, please save and close all work on the Q drive to prevent data loss. Once the migration is complete, you’ll receive a confirmation email. After that, please follow these steps:

After Migration
1) close everything you have open and proceed to restart your machine. This can be done by right clicking on the start menu, then going to “Shut down or sign out” and then selecting “restart”:

2) Once your machine has restarted, please ensure you are connected to the network before logging back in. This can be achieved by either connecting a network cable to your machine or by connecting to “Derian Secure” wifi. To connect to the wif you will need to click on the internet icon at the bottom of your login screen (see below image).  You need to authenticate with the secure wifi using your username and password that you use to log onto the machine with. Once connected you can then log back into your machine and you can check then to see if the Q drive is available for you. 

If the Q Drive Shows a Red Cross

If you can see the Q drive but it shows a red cross and you’re unable to access it, then it will have to be manually mapped. This can be achieved by doing the following:

1) Right click on the Q drive and select “Disconnect”:

This should now disappear.

2) You will now need to right click on “This PC” (this is above the Q drive) and select “Map network drive”:

3) From the drop down for “Drive” select “Q”. In the folder location enter \\stderianhousefiles.file.core.windows.net\data and then ensure “reconnect at sign-in” is checked:

Once it looks like the above, please select “Finish” and the Q drive should be available for you again.

If anyone has any issues, please raise a ticket with Eventura Servicedesk either by calling 0333 240 9946 or emailing servicedesk@eventura.com – a member of the Eventura team will also be on site to assist if need be.

Please inform your teams about the above if they are due in on Wednesday and won’t see this beforehand, this also applies to any volunteers that use a PC/laptop.

Kind Regards

Kirsty Yates

HOSPICE OPENING & CLOSING DAYS

• The hospice is open all week.

MONDAY 20th

• Our in-house children and young people will be enjoying autumn themed messy play this morning and watching movies in the cinema later today.
• 3 air conditioning units are being installed in the new offices today, the work is expected to finish on Wednesday.
• The Northern Children’s Hospice Collaborative is meeting today at Derian. Chief executives from 10 hospices across the region will come together to discuss a new data project we’ll be working on together.
• Swimming lessons are taking place this afternoon.
• There is a neonatal palliative care training session on the use of cooling technologies in perinatal after death taking place online at 2pm. This will be shown in the skills lab or if you would like the link, please email education@derianhouse.co.uk

TUESDAY 21st

• Playgroup will be taking place in the Seaside Room this morning.
• The medicines management committee will be meeting in the conference room at 10am.
• Our in-house children and young people will be doing some autumn inspired arts and crafts this morning and having fun and playing on Sunshine Park this afternoon.
• Play and Wellbeing will be delivering therapeutic play in the community today.
• We are holding a PA drop-in session at Bolton FC for our young people and their carers to take part in multi-sport games together between 11am – 1pm.
• There will be a cold debrief in the conference room at 1:30pm facilitated by Victoria Robinson.

WEDNESDAY 22nd  

• Our children and young people are off out on a trip this morning and exploring sensory stories back at the hospice this afternoon.
• Play and Wellbeing will be delivering therapeutic play in the community today.
• Our Cornerstones support group are watching ‘Bank of Dave 2’ in the cinema today.
• Rachel Toner will be joining us for a sing-a-long hour this morning.

THURSDAY 23rd

• We’re going on an autumn scavenger hunt!
• NEET day care for our young people not in education, employment or training is happening today in The Lodge.
• The quarterly LMT Connect meeting is taking place today. Managers from across the hospice will get together to discuss the work happening in their areas.
• There will be in-house hydrotherapy this afternoon.

FRIDAY 24th

• Nick Carroll, CEO of Together for Short Lives, will be visiting Derian House for the day for a tour and to meet with Karen and directors to understand more about our work.
• Our in-house children and young people will be doing Halloween crafts this morning before a music and movement session this afternoon.
• Derian babies will be enjoying baby massage on community visits with Tina today.
• Friday Night Club will be doing the Monster Mash at their Halloween Party tonight between 6 – 9pm.

SATURDAY 25th  

• There will be in-house hydrotherapy this morning.
• Our Youth family drop-in session takes place today between 1:30 – 3pm.
• We’re playing smell bingo this afternoon!

SUNDAY 26th

• This morning we’re going for a walk to the park before playing (and relaxing!) in the Sensory Room.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

• There are just 2 weeks leftto register for our Information Evening for our Sahara Desert Trek 2026. On Tuesday 4th November at 6:30pm, we will open our doors for our supporters to come along and learn all about the once in a lifetime challenge next year. If anyone would like to attend please visit the following link https://www.derianhouse.co.uk/events/saharadeserttrek/ and fill out the form, or email salmon@derianhouse.co.uk to reserve your place.
• Next week:The pharmacist will be coming back in again on 7 November, to provide flu vaccines for those who were unable to attend last time.
• Check out our current vacancies Careers | Derian House Children’s Hospice
• Thanks so much for sending your news this week. If you would like to share with the rest of Derian what your department is up to between 27 October – 2 November, please send an email to rabbett@derianhouse.co.uk before Thursday 23 October.

Have a great week everyone!

Hi everyone,

On Friday 31^st October, we can wear Halloween t-shirts to celebrate spooky season – please adhere to IPC when choosing your outfits.

HOSPICE OPENING & CLOSING DAYS

• This week, we have children and young people booked in from Tuesday 7th to Sunday 12th October.

MONDAY 6th

• Closed for in-house respite.
• Eventura are on site to continue switching the main hospice over to the new network (Sam will be with them).
• The drop-in flu vaccine clinic is available between 9am – 4:30pm in the Music Room and is free for all staff and volunteers.
• Today we welcome three new nurses to Team Derian, say hello to Kirsty Loyns, Laura Pollitt and Bethany Parkinson!

TUESDAY 7th

• Playgroup will be taking place in the Seaside Room today.
• Spooky season has officially arrived and we will be putting up Halloween decorations in The Lodge.
• Our in-house children and young people will be having fun and playing games on Sunshine Park this morning before a music and movement session this afternoon.

WEDNESDAY 8th

• We’ll be making autumn wreaths in Messy Play today.
• Rachel Toner will be joining us for a sing-a-long hour this morning.
• Our Pets as Therapy dog, Ted, will be visiting us this afternoon for lots of cuddles.
• In-house CYP will be enjoying fun and splashes in the hydrotherapy pool this afternoon.
• Our support group for bereaved mums meets this evening, they will be experiencing a Reiki drumming circle followed by Halloween crafts.

THURSDAY 9th   

• A therapeutic TacPac session will be held in the Sensory Room this morning.
• NEET day care for our young people not in education, employment or training.
• Popcorn and snacks at the ready, its movie time!

FRIDAY 10th

• Our children and young people will be taking part in sensory tactile play in the Messy PlayZone this morning and baking yummy treats to take home this afternoon.
• Our siblings group, Chill Out and Chat, will be meeting in the Seaside Room tonight from 6:30pm – 9pm.

SATURDAY 11th

• There will be in-house swimming this morning before we snuggle up to listen to our favourite fairy tales.
• The Lodgers will be doing some autumn themed crafts followed by a trip to the park.
• Danni’s Club for siblings will be getting together this afternoon in the Seaside Room from 1:30pm – 4pm.

SUNDAY 12th

• Eye’s down… We’re playing prize bingo!
• Our in-house children and young people are off on a woodland walk and taking part in a nature scavenger hunt.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

• Check out our current vacancies Careers | Derian House Children’s Hospice
• Thanks so much for sending your news this week. If you would like to share with the rest of Derian what your department is up to between 13 – 19 October, please send an email to rabbett@derianhouse.co.uk before Thursday 9 October.

Hello everyone, I hope that you’re all well.

I wanted to provide a brief update on a number of matters across the charity so that you’re all up to speed.

1. Strategic Plan and priorities.  Now that we have a new Chair of Trustees and will be recruiting additional members of the Board, I have been asked to revisit our current strategic priorities and provide clarity on strategic KPIs and objectives across all departments.  To enable the team and I to do this we are engaging an external consultant who will facilitate a number of workshops over the coming weeks so that we are able to present a new strategic plan to Trustees in early 2026.
2. Caroline and Karen (HR) will be leading a piece of work over the coming week alongside the strategy review process, to ensure that our current values are fit for purpose and support our ambitious plans.
3. Growth is central to this new plan, particularly across our non-clinical service delivery and we will be appointing a new Director position to help to lead that growth going forward.
4. My role will become much more strategic and driving progress against our new strategic plan and therefore the board have supported the creation of a new role, a Deputy CEO position.  Following a competitive process I am delighted to share with you all that Caroline Taylor has been appointed and officially takes that position from today, the 1^st Caroline will retain all of her current responsibilities, we will provide some backfilling support to free her up a day or so a week to focus on the developmental side of her new role.
5. The new offices in the hospice are almost completed.  Thank you everyone for putting up with the noise and inconvenience caused when having building works carried out.  I’m sure it has been very frustrating, but it is very much coming to an end this week.
6. As you all know The Little Things has been one of the most innovative and empowering projects that we have been part of over recent years.  Its ability to reach all over the world and put children hospice work directly into people’s living rooms is so special and unique.  To recognise all that Paul Woodward has achieved and contributed to Derian House I have personally asked him to become a Patron of the charity, which he has accepted.  Paul joins Kiki Deville as our 2^nd
7. As engagement with our families is central to everything that we do, we are developing a Family Experience Strategy which will outline clearly our commitment across the whole organisation of how we put families at the heart of everything that we do.  I’m hoping to share this with everyone very soon.

As always, my door ( or doors now that I have 2 spaces J) is always open, feel free to let me know what’s happening in your area of the charity.

Thanks everyone

Hello Everyone,

Whilst it’s a lovely sunny day today, I’m about to remind everyone that we will shortly be feeling the colder weather as we head into the Autumn and Winter seasons!

With this in mind, I’m pleased we are able to support all colleagues (staff and volunteers) with the flu vaccine this year, which is kindly being provided by the ICB.

All details on how to get yourself protected are below.

Today we say goodbye to John Boe, who led our Facilities and Infrastructure for almost two years.

We wish him a very happy retirement from everyone at Derian House, and hope he enjoys lots of walks in the Lakes, baking pies, carving his beloved shepherd’s crooks, and spending more time with his family.

Our annual newsletter, Stories and Smiles, and our Christmas shop and events calendar are available now!

Read about all the amazing things we have been up to this year, and find out more about upcoming events – as well as ticking off your Christmas list in our festive shop.

You can pick your copies up in reception from today.

WHAT’S ON WEEKLY @ DERIAN HOUSE

Monday 22nd September – Sunday 28th September

HOSPICE OPENING & CLOSING DAYS

• The hospice is opened to planned care Monday 22nd September until the evening of Saturday 27th September. There are care team staff on call for Saturday 27th and Sunday 28th September, for any unplanned admissions. Planned stays resume on Monday 29th September.

MONDAY 22nd  

• Work starts on the Care Team office today to create five individual offices on the right-hand side.
• Our in-house children and young people will be taking part in some messy, tactile sensory fun this morning and playing prize bingo this afternoon.
• Swimming lessons with Caroline are taking place today.

TUESDAY 23rd  

• Playgroup with Donna is taking place this morning in the Seaside Room.
• Our children and young people will be doing arts and crafts in the Messy Play Zone this morning and baking yummy treats to take home this afternoon.
• Basic Life Support training for non-clinical staff and volunteers is taking place in the Clinical Skills Lab from 10am – 11:30am.
• We are holding a Gifts in Wills information event today in the Seaside Room from 1pm – 2:30pm. All staff are welcome to attend. Find out how to get started with writing your Will (there will be also be cake and hot drinks!)

WEDNESDAY 24th

• The Youth Team together with Dawn A, Tanya M and a group of young people and families with be presenting at a ‘Transition Care Conference’ at Shaw Hill in collaboration with St Catherine’s Hospice.
• A therapeutic TacPac session with Donna will be held in the Sensory Room this morning.
• Derian babies will be enjoying baby massage on community visits today.
• Cornerstones bereaved grandparents group is taking place in the Seaside Room today between 10am-12pm.
• Please join us in the Seaside Room from 2pm to congratulate John Boe on his retirement. Cake and refreshments will be available, everyone is welcome.
• Our in-house CYP are off on a mini bus outing with Claire this afternoon!

THURSDAY 25th

• Happy Payday!
• We are having two new door readers installed – one in the reflection area, and one on the external door to the main hospice (opposite the Seaside Room).
• Our children and young people staying in-house will be going on a sensory journey this morning and enjoying fun and splashes in the hydrotherapy pool this afternoon.
• Day care is taking place in The Lodge for our young people who are not in education, employment or training.
• Tina and Caroline will be delivering baby massage and therapeutic play in the community today.

FRIDAY 26th

• Today our children and young people will be doing autumn themed crafts before snuggling down with their favourite stories this afternoon.
• Join Hayleigh in the Clinical Skills Lab from 1:30pm for the next controlled drugs training.
• Friday Night Club for our over 18’s will take place in the Lodge Lounge/Kitchen from 6:30pm this evening.

SATURDAY 27th

• This morning our children and young people will be making a splash in the hydrotherapy pool before wrapping up warm for a walk in Astley Park to collect autumn treasures.
• Our Youth Family Drop-in event takes place today where our older children and young people are able to spend quality time with their families and enjoy a range of games, crafts and other activities.

SUNDAY 28th

• Closed for in-house respite.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

• We’ve teamed up with 143 hospices across the country to raise awareness of the importance of gifts in Wills. Look out for the Hospice UK advert on TV and let us know if you see it!
• Kirsty Yates is away on annual leave until 6th October, please log all IT issues with Eventura or Sam Lamb.
• We are currently recruiting for: GP Advisor, Director of Children and Family Services, Named Nurse for Safeguarding Children and Adults.For more information visit the careers section of our website.
• Thanks so much for sending your news this week. If you would like to share with the rest of Derian what your department is up to between 29 September – 5 October, please send an email to rabbett@derianhouse.co.uk before Thursday 25 September.

Have a great week everyone!

Good morning everyone,

Last night, we launched our brand new Fundraising Video which has been many months in the making. A huge thanks to all of the staff and volunteers who agreed to take part, be that in an interview or background artist role! 🙂

You can find the link to it on YouTube here:

Derian House Fundraising Video 2025

This is a tool that we can all use, be that to engage new supporters, reach new families, or in training and external meetings to show who we are and what we do.

I’ve put a copy of the video in the Q Drive > Drop Zone (3 Months) so you can save it to your own drives/use in your own presentations.

Thank you and enjoy 🙂

Hi all,

A while back we emailed to request that all feedback and evaluations, also including any comments and compliments, following session and touch points with CYPs and families should be sent to the Engagement inbox (engagement@derianhouse.co.uk)

This is to ensure we are shaping our services around what our families want. This information will be shared back to all relevant staff members as well as highlighting to our families “you said we did”.

I just wanted to send a reminder to everyone as we haven’t received much feedback recently.

If anyone has any questions please get in touch.

On Friday 22nd August we are holding an event in the garden to celebrate the launch of our hospice documentary, The Little Things, on Amazon Prime.

We have over 50 guests attending the event and need to ensure there is adequate parking available at the hospice for their arrival.

Any staff on the early shift are welcome to park at the hospice, but please keep the main carpark free by parking only down the side of The Lodge or over on the Vinten side of the carpark.

We are politely requesting that all other staff arriving from 8am onwards park at TC’s Sports Bar, Chancery Fields, Astley Village, Chorley, PR7 1DG until after the event finishes (approx 2pm).

Richard has very kindly offered to operate a shuttle service into work from 8am.

Thank you for you cooperation with this, it is much appreciated.

Find out more about The Little Things documentary coming to Amazon Prime.

In preparation of our feature-length Derian House documentary hitting Amazon Prime in the UK and US next Friday 22nd August, we’ve adorned 50 buses with our official film poster to spread the word.

Over the next few weeks, you may just see The Little Things film poster across a double-decker if you’re in Manchester, Oldham, Preston or Wigan.

If you see us, take a photo and make sure to tag us in your Instagram story!

Derian House Children’s Hospice has appointed a new Chair of the Board of Trustees.

Paul Morton has taken on the top job and plans to ensure the charity continues to become the gold standard for children’s hospice care, setting the benchmark for others across the UK.

Derian’s previous Chair of trustees Karen Swindley retired from her position earlier this week, after nine years’ service.

Under her watchful eye, Derian House earned a rating of Outstanding from the Care Quality Commission (CQC), had a £1.7m refurbishment, and introduced free holidays for families.

Paul said he will build on the great work already done and looks forward to leading the Board of Trustees on the charity’s next exciting chapter.

Paul joins Derian following a career as a global healthcare leader spanning four decades.

He has worked at the highest level at some of the biggest private healthcare and medical technology companies across the world.

In his free time, the dad of three grown up children, who lives with his wife Nicky in Euxton, Chorley, also fosters Guide dogs, is a member of Euxton Parish Council, and serves as a Magistrate at Cumbria and Lancashire Family Court.

He has a raft of experience on charity boards, with a focus on building communities and helping people to create opportunities, enabling them to thrive whatever their circumstances.

He said: “I’ve had a base in Euxton for many years and Derian House has always been there. For as long as I can remember I’ve wanted get involved, but had never had the time before now having been so busy in my careers.

“The amazing and important work Derian does with families fits in with my thinking and my beliefs. I have always strived to ensure that children have the best opportunities, whatever they are going through, and whatever that may look like to them.

“I’m absolutely honoured to have been given the chance to be involved in influencing the future of this incredible charity and I am looking forward to utilising all of my experience and knowledge to help Derian House thrive and innovate.”

Karen Edwards, Chief Executive of Derian House Children’s Hospice, said: “We are thrilled to welcome Paul to the Derian family. He brings with him not only a wealth of professional experience but a deep-rooted passion for helping children and families live their best lives.

“We’re excited for the future and look forward to working with Paul to continue delivering the very best care and support to families who need us.”

Karen Swindley, former Chair of the Board of Trustees at Derian House Children’s Hospice, said: “I wish Paul every success in taking over the reins and leading the board of Derian House forward from the amazing place we have taken it to.”

Hello all,

The regulations surrounding waste management have changed and we are now required to separate recycling from the domestic waste.

I will be putting new bins around the hospice for you to place cans, plastics and glass into. Paper and cardboard can still be left at the side of the bin.

Thank you for your cooperation in helping make Derian green but if you have any issues please let me know.

Chair of Trustees, Karen Swindley, who has dedicated nine years of her time – a third of the hospice’s existence – will be retiring from the Board of Trustees at Derian House Children’s Hospice.

Under her guidance, the charity has gone from strength to strength – achieving an Outstanding rating from the Care Quality Commission and strengthening Derian House’s reputation as a leader in children’s hospice care.

As Chair of the Board, Karen helped steer major initiatives, including the £1.7million refurbishment of the hospice building and gardens in 2019, and the development of the Derian on Holiday service, enabling families to enjoy precious time away together, free of charge.

Now stepping back from her role, Karen is looking forward to enjoying more time with family and friends.

“It has been an absolute honour to serve as the Chair of Trustees at Derian House,” said Karen, whose career in the NHS spanned 35 years, before she retired two years ago from her role as Chief People Officer at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

“Working alongside such passionate, talented people – from staff and volunteers to my fellow trustees – has been incredibly rewarding. I’m very proud of everything we’ve achieved together, especially seeing Derian House recognised nationally for the outstanding care it provides.

“Everyone hears children’s hospice, and they think that it must be a sad place. And yes, Derian House does have some sad moments, but there is also so much joy there too. It’s filled with children and young people who are being given experiences that they wouldn’t ordinarily have. Our teams go above and beyond to make sure families make the most of every moment and so it can also be a very happy place to be.

“The first time I visited Derian House was for an open day and craft fair at the hospice about 20 years ago. The hospice has links to my family as my nephew used Derian House’s services – so I already knew what the charity did. I have always been a public servant, and for me, it has always been about giving something back. I joined the Board of Trustees in December 2016 becoming Chair early in 2017.

“I joined Derian House at a difficult time for the hospice. I remember being in my first ever Board meeting with the other Trustees and discussing the outcome of a recent Care Quality Commission inspection which had come back as ‘requires improvement’. To come from that, now to a rating of ‘outstanding’ is amazing. I remember that it took a very long time for the results of that last inspection to come back, because it’s so unusual for an organisation to jump to such a high rating in one inspection so there was a lot of scrutiny over the outcome. When we finally heard the news it just blew us all away – that we’d been able to achieve that.

“Because of having such a broad remit in my executive role in the NHS and knowledge of the Care Quality Commission, it has meant that I have been able to understand every part of the business – whether its human resources, quality, finance – it’s all essential to making sure things run as they should for our families. I hope I have been able to put that experience to good use during my time with Derian.

“I feel incredibly proud of the organisation and what it does. Derian House is above and beyond respite care. And the charity is now so innovative in so many ways. One of my favourite things about the charity is the holiday lodges, where Derian families can have a free week’s holiday each year. I feel honoured to have been part of this journey and to see how far we have come.

“I’m going to miss Derian House, it has been a huge part of my life for almost 10 years. I have so many memories there. A truly unforgettable moment for me was when a mystery donor decided to gift a fully paid for Disney holiday for 13 of our families, I’m not ashamed to admit I cried when I heard! I’ll also miss the Lights of Love service each December, a lovely event and the start of Christmas for many, when our community comes together to watch one of our families light up the Christmas tree.

“Now that I’m stepping down, I’m looking forward to spending more time with family and friends, including my husband, Barry, and our two dogs Alfie and Mitzi. We’ll be spending lots of time doing DIY in our home as we have just recently moved. I’m also looking forward to spending more time catching up with friends.

“It has been an absolute privilege. I want to say thank you to my fellow Trustees, who give up their time for such a fantastic cause. I also want to thank all the Derian House staff and volunteers, you are all amazing. Everyone is dedicated to what Derian does, and have made it the wonderful place that it is. I wish everyone all the best for the future. I feel so very proud of Derian House and all those who work there and those who support us. I hope that the charity continues to grow and prosper in the future.”

Derian House has now appointed a new Chair of the Trustee Board, Paul Morton.

Karen Edwards OBE, Chief Executive of Derian House, paid tribute to Karen’s service, saying: “I have enjoyed working with Karen, she has been a huge support for me especially in the early days of my role as Chief Executive here at Derian House. Karen has brought wisdom, compassion and a deep commitment to everything she’s done here at the hospice. Her time as Chair has been instrumental in shaping our vision and ensuring we deliver on our promise to children and families.

“We are incredibly grateful for her dedication and all she has done to strengthen the hospice. On behalf of everyone at Derian House, I thank her sincerely and wish her all the best in her well-earned retirement.”

Some days stay GOLD forever! 🏅

The award-winning Derian House entry in this year’s Community and School Show Garden competition was showcased at the tenth annual Chorley Flower Show in Astley Park over the weekend… 🌺

…and what a weekend it was, taking a trip down memory lane as we celebrated the event’s epic milestone year with a ‘Through the Decades’ theme! 🤩

Our display took us back to the nineties, and showcased the origin story of Derian House Children’s Hospice – which back in 1993, was one of only five in the whole of the UK 🏡

With toy JCBs representing the breaking of the ground courtesy of national treasure Ken Dodd, a working construction site (with actual brick wall!), a playable sandpit, and a scaled-down Seaside Garden decking area, our perfect plot certainly grabbed the judges’ attention 🚧

A particular highlight for garden guests was the interactive 1993 spinning quiz – which for those of you left pondering, a pint of milk back then was just 34p! 🥛

A huge thanks to our team of staff and volunteers who put together 2025’s Derian display, and for those who gave up their time this weekend to speak with over 12,000 event-goers about the work we do here at the North West’s children’s hospice 💚

Hello all,

Following on from recent safety inspections I am pleased to let you know we have passed the Risk Assessment with a few bits to action.

With that in mind please can I remind everyone of the importance of fire safety and security with the following points;

• Fire doors should not be propped open with door wedges, if you feel a door needs to stay open please let me know and we will look at magnetic retainers on these doors.
• Equipment shouldn’t be stored on corridors or in a stair well.
• Emergency exits should not be used a regular exits to the building, I have seen the doors in the diner and on the link corridor used for this.
• Gates to the garden should remain closed from a safety and security perspective.
• Please ensure if you are allowing access to someone anywhere in the hospice they have an ID badge be it visitor, contractor or volunteer.

Your co-operation is much appreciated.

If you have any concerns or ideas to ensure the safety and security of our families and yourselves please let me know.

Hi everyone,

Please be aware that during the summer holidays on Tuesdays, we will be closing Danni’s Diner to staff at 12:45pm to accommodate our families, children and young people attending Family Day Care.

You will be able to eat your lunch in the lounge/snug/hopefully outside if the weather is nice (!) after this time, subject to availability.

This will be from today (Tuesday 22^nd July), with the last one being Tuesday 2^nd September.

Thank you for your cooperation J

When Angela Danby bought a book of raffle tickets to support her local children’s hospice, she never thought she would be a winner.

But on Friday (27 June), Angela – who was preparing to go out for a meal to celebrate her daughter’s birthday that night – was surprised at her front door with the news she had won the £5,000 jackpot in the Derian House Summer Raffle.

Astounded Angela cried out: “I’ve got my rollers in!” before hugging staff from the hospice who had travelled to her home carrying giant numbers to break the good news.

£1,000 was awarded to the second prize winner, £500 to the third prize winner, and 20 runners-up won prizes of £25 in the raffle that ran from March to June.

With entries flying in from as far as Devon and Scotland, the raffle launched by the Chorley children’s hospice sold 20,637 tickets – raising a phenomenal £31,170 for the charity’s children and young adults.

And it wasn’t just ticket sales that boosted the total – the charity was inundated with donations from kind-hearted supporters that amounted to £11,533.

Winner of the top £5,000 prize is Angela Danby, a public speaker and former journalist, who lives in Rufford with her husband, Will Danby, daughter Sophia, 22, son William, 24, and rescue cat George Walter.

She said: “I was just out in the garden when the Derian House team appeared holding up the £5,000 number cards. I was moving things around as we were preparing for the scarecrow competition the next day. I wasn’t expecting it, I had forgotten I’d entered. In fact I first thought it was a scam. I was getting ready to go out – I had no makeup on and I had my rollers in!

“The surprise couldn’t have come at a better time. We all went out for food to Penelope’s in Birkdale for my daughter Sophia’s birthday, and we took out grandma too who is 90. We all had celebratory cocktails – it was a really lovely night.

“I’m going to give some of the money to my children to help towards a deposit on their first home. But some of it will definitely be going back to Derian House. They do such amazing work. And when my dad passed away two years ago, he wanted some of the money from the funeral to go to Derian House. So we’re all big supporters of the hospice. I just can’t believe it, thank you so much.”

The Derian House summer raffle closed for entries on midnight on 20 June 2025.

Sarah Proctor, Community Fundraiser at Derian House, said: “Angela’s surprise and joy at winning £5,000 was absolutely wonderful to see. Even George Walter the cat came to have a look. We hope she had a wonderful birthday meal with her daughter.

“The amount of money raised in the Derian House summer raffle will make a real difference to seriously ill children and young people from across the North West. It will cost £6 million to run Derian House this year and we rely heavily on the generosity of our supporters as we only receive a small amount of this in NHS funding.”

For full terms and conditions of the raffle visit: https://www.derianraffle.co.uk/terms-conditions/

An explosion of colourful paints covered hundreds of runners who took part in the brand new Derian House Colour Run on Saturday (28 June) to raise money for children whose lives are too short.

Donning vibrant props, sunglasses, and glitter face paint – people of all ages and abilities took part in the family fun run on the field beside the hospice, based in Astley Village, Chorley – raising an incredible £21,531.63 for Derian House.

The Colour Run kicked off with a fun Zumba session with instructor Sylvia Skinner alongside Derian House’s mascot, Danni, to get everyone warmed up and ready to go.

There were plenty of smiles as everyone crossed the finish line, each receiving their very own Colour Run medal, provided for free by John Harrison Sports Ltd of Leyland.

Junior, 16, who visits Derian House, took part in the Colour Run with his younger sister Bella, 11, mum Belinda, and nan Tina.

Junior said: “It was a wonderful and fantastic experience. I had a super day and loved how messy I could get – my wheelchair still has some paint on it!”

Chorley MP Sir Lindsay Hoyle made an appearance to show his support for the charity.

And participants enjoyed refreshments, including ice creams provided by Ramzy’s Whippy, at the event sponsored by Vincents Solicitors.

Kerry Salmon, Community Fundraiser at Derian House, said: “I want to say a massive thank you to all the runners, volunteers, businesses, sponsors and staff who helped make Derian’s first ever Colour Run a success. It was such a vibrant and memorable day, and we can’t wait to do it all over again next year.

“Care is free to families at Derian House, but it will cost £6million to run the hospice this year. We rely on our kind-hearted supporters to raise 70p in every £1 as we only receive a small amount of funding from the government.”

Good afternoon everyone,

I am very happy to share that the Trustees have approved a 3.6% cost of living salary increase for all employees.  This will be effective within your July salary and will be backdated to the 1^st April 2025.  I hope you agree that this is wonderful news given the current economic climate.

Hi everyone!

I just wanted to make you all aware that next Saturday, 28^th June, we have our first ever Derian House Colour Run happening!

We are looking forward to welcoming nearly 600 people to Derian House and cannot wait for the chaos and colour!

So far, our Colour Run has raised an incredible £13,459, which I’m sure you’ll agree is amazing!

I also wanted to let you know that on Friday 27^th June from 3pm onwards, part of the car park will be being sectioned off ready for some of our vendors the following morning.

Our brilliant Estates Team will be sure sectioning the car park off, so please try your best to not park in the new car park spaces on the right hand side of the car park as you enter Derian House.  (To be exact…from the Derian House sign on the drive, all the way back to the new lovely little rockery, and all the way across to the fences of our Astley Village neighbours.)

The event itself will all be contained onto the field, we will however be having a few Blue Badge cars parking on the car park here. Please, if you are working on Saturday 28^th June, please be very wary of our guests as you enter the car park, and drive cautiously.

If anyone has any questions please do let me know. Thank you so much for your help!

Hi everyone,

We’ve got another success story from our amazing Derian Dynamos team!

Harrison, Luke and Felix (aka Maverick, Iceman & Goose) beat the best of the best at Bolton Arena yesterday to become the North West Regional Kurling Champions for a second year running!

In collaboration with Panathlon and Bolton Wanderers in the Community, they were up against six other teams from schools all over the North West and stormed through winning five out of their six games.

We are so proud of their commitment, vision and team work and have seen their confidence soar throughout the local and regional competitions.

Hello all,

You will be pleased to know you no longer have to take your laptop to the printer to print!  The ‘Papercut’ software is back on the server!

You will need to log on to the printer using your ID badge, it will ask you ‘Do you wish to associate this card with the user account’, select YES, input your log in credentials that you use to log in to your laptop – FIRSTNAME.SURNAME then PASSWORD.

Evolve (photocopying company) have confirmed that all printing that was accidently sent to the ‘follow me on Moana’ printer in the last few months has been deleted.

In addition to the above, you will receive an email from Domain postmaster address stating you have ‘new held messages’ from evolve.scanner@evolvemail.co.uk – please release this email as it will be a PIN number that you can use to log on to the printer with in case you misplace your ID badge.

Happy Printing!

Kind Regards

Kirsty Yates

Admin Team Leader

Hi everyone,

It has been highlighted recently that some computer and iPad screens have been left unlocked and information visible while staff have moved away from their desk, or on some occasions while in meetings for some length of time.

Can I please remind everyone that it is your responsibility to make sure your computer or iPad screen is locked and information is not visible to anyone not authorised to view it.  This is a potential breach of our Data Protection and Information Governance policies & guidance as well as legislation, therefore continued non-adherence could lead to further action being taken.

This issue was discussed at today’s Information Governance Steering Group meeting, and managers have been tasked with addressing this issue with individual staff members where this is found.

Many thanks,

Anthony.

Welcome to Children’s Hospice Week – a celebration of the nation’s 53 hospices for children, and the wonderful work they do to help youngsters whose lives are too short.

For families caring for a seriously ill child, Derian House is a safe haven where they and their children can get care and support, enjoy their time together and make precious memories.

Throughout the course of this week, we’ll be sharing stories about the care we offer here at the North West’s children’s hospice over on our social media pages, so keep an eye out!

In 2024, we helped over 400 babies, children and young people – whose lives are too short – make happy memories in an environment of fun, respect and above all, Outstanding Care.