Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal opens the Hospice UK conference in Glasgow

Her Royal Highness, who is a patron of Strathcarron Hospice near Falkirk, had the chance to meet staff from across hospices in Scotland and the UK, including David Waughman, a volunteer gardener at St Columba’s Hospice in Edinburgh, and Dr Sam Kyeremateng, Medical Director at St Luke’s Hospice in Sheffield and recently appointed trustee at Hospice UK.

The engagement marked the latest chapter in a long history of the Royal Family’s support for the UK’s charitable hospice sector. The Princess Royal praised the work of the around 40,000 staff and 96,000 volunteers working in hospices around the UK.

The Hospice UK conference is the annual opportunity for the hospice community to meet and discuss the challenges and opportunities faced by the sector.

Paul Jennings, chair of Hospice UK, who opened the conference alongside Her Royal Highness, said: “It is our pleasure and honour in the hospice movement to have enjoyed such fulsome and generous support from Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal and indeed her wider family ever since the beginnings of our work in the 1960s.

“Our staff and volunteers work so hard every day to ensure that patients and families get the best possible care in the moments when it matters the most. I know it means so much to them to have the support of our Royal Family. On behalf of those staff, I’d like to warmly thank Her Royal Highness for taking the time to join us today.”

David Waughman, who won this year’s hospice volunteer gardener of the year award in recognition of his work in St Columba’s Compassionate Gardeners scheme, added: “It is such a joy for me to help maintain the beautiful gardens at St Columba’s Hospice, overlooking the Firth of Forth. I know how much difference it makes to patients and families at such a difficult time to be able to enjoy this outdoor space.  

“Our Compassionate Gardeners scheme is all about giving people the joy of gardening in the final days and weeks of their life – even when they thought they might never get it again. It means a great deal that Her Royal Highness acknowledged the work we do. It was a pleasure to meet her.”

The vital role played by hospice gardens will be celebrated at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in May 2025, where Hospice UK has a show garden with renowned garden designer Thomas Hoblyn.