Imagine your business had a-once-in-a-generation chance to bring a profound change for the good to hundreds of some of Scotland’s most vulnerable families. But to deliver it your organisation must lead fundamental system change. Would you do it?
That’s exactly what Children’s Hospices Across Scotland (CHAS) is doing with its £20m More Than A Hospice appeal.
Across Scotland few organisations operate at the intersection of compassion and complexity like CHAS. Providing palliative care to children with life-shortening conditions free of charge, the charity is driven by a clear mission: to provide unwavering care to children who may die young, and their families, at every step of this most difficult journey.
The hard reality behind this ambition is that to deliver impact at scale and to support systemic change, CHAS must operate with private sector discipline. For chief executive Rami Okasha, it is fundamental.
“Like any successful company, CHAS focuses on setting clear strategy, hiring brilliant people to deliver it, and ensuring high performance. Our trustees and senior staff have a legal responsibility to deliver the best possible charitable impact,” he says.
CHAS focuses on setting clear strategy, hiring brilliant people to deliver it, and ensuring high performance
- Rami Okasha
CHAS operates across hospices, hospitals and family homes, with expectations heightened by growing demand for children’s palliative care.
Okasha adds: “Life is extremely tough for many of the families we are supporting. They manage complex care needs alongside emotional strain and uncertain futures, so CHAS is determined to do all we can. We can only do that by ensuring everything we do is well managed and future-facing.
“All larger charities must abide by the legal and governance requirements of a company, and in addition all the legal requirements of being a registered charity. That helps drive public trust,” he says.
Good governance sits at the heart of that trust. CHAS’s board brings together clinical, financial and commercial expertise, ensuring oversight of both care quality and organisational performance. Chief operating officer Jane Smith highlights the deliberate balance of skills.
“Our trustees are non-executive, and come from diverse backgrounds. Senior medical, nursing and social work figures who bring excellent oversight of clinical delivery sit alongside senior finance and commercial professionals who bring constructive challenge on strategy and delivery,” she says.
The trustees are all volunteers, giving their time because they care. That model reinforces accountability and ensures CHAS benefits from high-level expertise.
Purpose and professionalism also define CHAS’s approach to partnerships. Corporate relationships are strategic collaborations rather than transactional fundraising.
For director of income generation and engagement, Iain McAndrew, this is a business-informed approach.
“Partnerships, like our longstanding work with Loganair, work because this isn’t just a financial ask. They donate flights to our care teams, we offer opportunities for their staff to connect with the communities they serve. It’s a strong alignment of mission.”
The exchange of skills is equally valuable, Iain adds,
“The skills and expertise of our corporate partners’ employees often help ours, and almost every partnership says it widens their staff perspectives too.”
CHAS’s three-year More than A Hospice appeal, which launched in April, will bring systemic change in access to care and real choice for families.
Delivery will require sustained public financial support as well as continued partnership with NHS Scotland and the Scottish Government. These relationships demand the same level of negotiation, long-term planning and accountability expected in the private sector.
Okasha concludes: “Running CHAS effectively means combining the heart of a charity with the discipline of a business. Every decision has to work harder, because the families we support have no margin for error.”
In a sector defined by purpose, CHAS offers a clear lesson: impact is not driven by intent alone, but by the rigour and performance behind it.
If your company is looking to make an impact, contact our team at support@chas.org.uk
Partner Content in association with CHAS
