Princess Royal attends Dorothy House’s 50th anniversary celebrations

On a lovely, sunny afternoon on Thursday 2 July, Dorothy House was honoured to welcome Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal to celebrate 50 years of hospice care.

Her Royal Highness met with Hospice staff, volunteers and supporters to commemorate and thank them for the care they have provided to over 75,000 people since the Hospice was founded by Prue Dufour in 1976. Her Royal Highness also met with patients, families and supporters and local dignitaries during her visit, and rounded off her visit with an inspiring speech and unveiling of a commemorative plaque to celebrate Dorothy House’s 50th anniversary.

“It is a great privilege to welcome HRH The Princess Royal to Dorothy House Hospice as the organisation marks its remarkable 50th anniversary year. For five decades, Dorothy House has provided outstanding care, compassion and dignity to thousands of patients and families across Wiltshire, often at the most difficult moments in their lives. This visit recognises not only the Hospice’s extraordinary history and continuing service to the community, but also the dedication and professionalism of its staff and volunteers, whose kindness and commitment make such a profound difference every day.”

The Lord-Lieutenant of Wiltshire, Dame Sarah Troughton DCVO

The event later featured in the evening broadcast of BBC Points West, showing footage of Her Royal Highness meeting members of our workforce. The piece also featured an interview with Victoria Neward, Prue Dufour’s sister, who also attended the event and spoke of Prue’s determination and commitment to palliative care. BBC Points West is one of many forms of media coverage we’ve featured in this past year, including a celebratory 50th anniversary feature with ITV West Country back in May, and the BBC Panorama programme exploring the realities of hospice care, the financial pressures facing the sector and the national conversation around assisted dying, which aired in March.

Previous Royal visits

Her Royal Highness last visited Dorothy House in September 2023 for the opening Firefly Woods to our wider community. On this occasion, the Hospice’s Patron accepted a Firefly in memory of her late mother and father, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh.

Celebrating our past, present and future

As part of the afternoon, we also heard from our Chief Executive Wayne de Leeuw, followed by an incredibly moving speech from Cara, who is currently under our care. Cara has featured in our latest Monthly Giving appeal, and also shared her story as part of our Life Lines campaign last year. In her speech she spoke about how Dorothy House is supporting her and her family, her incredible cycling challenge from Lands’ End to John O’Groats, and just how much the care means to her. It’s safe to say, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house!

The special occasion came just two weeks after the Care Quality Commission confirmed it was extending Dorothy House’s ‘Outstanding’ rating, following an inspection in January 2026.

“Our 50th anniversary is an incredible moment to remember the more than 75,000 lives and deaths supported in that time, to celebrate the people who helped make that possible and to recognise the vital role that Dorothy House and its many partners play in the provision of end of life care and will continue to play in the years ahead. The recent extension of our CQC ‘Outstanding’ rating is testament to the dedication, care and compassion that our workforce demonstrates every day.”

Wayne de Leeuw, Dorothy House Chief Executive

Changing the landscape of end of life care for 50 years

Prue Dufour set up the Dorothy House Foundation in 1976. She was determined to bring innovative palliative and end of life care to the West Country. In the past five decades, Dorothy House’s dedication to serving the local community hasn’t changed, it has evolved and grown to meet increasing local demand.

Dorothy House’s remit has however, moved on, from caring for people and their families in their very final days, to looking after them in their last 1000 days, offering clinical and holistic support from the time they’re diagnosed with a life-limiting illness through to providing practical and bereavement support to their loved ones when they die.

Although serving families across the south-west of England, the Hospice’s pioneering, specialist work has created ripples throughout the UK and all over the world. In the early days, all nurses wanting to become Macmillan cancer nurses were trained and gained experience at Dorothy House. The Hospice also taught GPs and trainees about symptom management and specific communication skills and were invited to travel the country and abroad to spread the word about the then-new discipline of palliative care.

Today, a dedicated Research and Education team exists to understand, develop and transform the landscape of palliative and end of life care. The Hospice works closely with other leading providers, forging fruitful partnerships in the UK and internationally, as well as collaborating with higher education institutes and receiving international grants to develop and refine groundbreaking research.

The future of Dorothy House

Today’s blueprint for end of care life won’t be sustainable for the next 50 years. The UK (and indeed the world) has an ageing population, and the balance of older to younger people will shift significantly due to increased life expectancy and fewer children being born. By 2047, the 85+ age group is expected to have nearly doubled to 3.3 million, from 1.7 million in 2022.

The status quo will have to change. Dorothy House, along with other healthcare providers, is doing things differently, innovating to meet an ever-increasing demand. The cost of caring for individuals in their last days will need to be reduced, moving away from a mainly medical approach to one that’s more holistic, with an emphasis on quality over quantity.

Giving control back to people, empowering them to shape their own end of life, getting back to nature to rediscover what’s set deep in our human DNA, all fits with the founding philosophy of Dorothy House.

“Ever since the beginning, the Hospice has been working towards a society where death is part of life. That’s our vision for the future. And we’re doing everything we can to make it happen.”

Wayne de Leeuw, Dorothy House Chief Executive

Moments of Light – 50th anniversary art installation

In celebration of our 50th anniversary and as an articulation of our Hospice vision, Dorothy House Ambassador and international light artist Bruce Munro is bringing Moments of Light, an immersive art installation to the Hospice grounds this autumn. Tickets are free, with an optional donation to the Hospice and can be booked here.

Thank you to Her Royal Highness for being a part of our 50-year celebration, to all who attended the event, and to those who worked hard behind the scenes to make it such a special occasion. Here’s to the next 50 years!