Our Story
Ngā tapuwae
Since 1982, Cranford Hospice has provided free, specialist palliative care to the people of Hawke’s Bay with compassion, commitment and collaboration. This care is made possible by the generosity of our community and the dedication of our team.
Who we are
Since 1982, Cranford Hospice has provided specialist palliative care—free of charge—to people across Hawke’s Bay, from Māhia to Takapau. We support patients and their loved ones at home and in our InPatient Unit. The focus is on helping people live every moment with dignity, comfort and compassion.
Palliative care is about more than medical treatment. It’s about caring for the whole person, their physical, emotional, spiritual and cultural wellbeing—while also supporting their whānau. Our dedicated team helps people by:
- managing pain and other complex symptoms
- providing grief and bereavement support
- helping families navigate practical and end-of-life decisions
- creating space for meaningful conversations and moments together
- delivering care closer to home for rural communities
- educating and supporting healthcare professionals across the region.
Everything we do is guided by our values of compassion, commitment and collaboration—shaping how we care for our patients, whānau and each other, every day.
Our Mission and Values
Vision | Moemoeā—Access to the very best palliative care within a compassionate community.
Mission | Whakatakanga—We provide the very best specialist palliative care and bereavement support, with commitment, collaboration and compassion.
Our Values
Compassion | Aroha—We care with empathy, kindness and respect, walking alongside people and whānau through life’s most challenging moments.
Commitment | Manaakitanga—We’re dedicated to the highest standard of care, support and service, delivered with generosity, integrity and heart.
Collaboration | Mahi Tahi—We work in partnership with patients, whānau, healthcare professionals and our wider community, because the best care happens together.
How we're funded
It costs around $9 million a year to deliver specialist palliative care at no cost to patients and whānau. Around half of this comes through contracts with Health New Zealand, Te Whatu Ora, with the remaining $4 million raised each year through the generosity of our community. We manage our funds closely to ensure we can provide compassionate care now and into the future. For every dollar fundraised, 82 cents goes directly to patient care.
As demand for palliative care grows—with people living longer and often with more complex needs—so too does our need for community support. We’re proud to be a community-supported hospice, and grateful for the generosity that makes this care possible.
Our History
Our story began in 1977, when Jack Mackie, then Director of the Presbyterian Social Services Association (now Presbyterian Support East Coast), was inspired by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross’s On Death and Dyingto bring specialist hospice care to Hawke’s Bay. At a time when little was understood about hospice care, he built community support region-wide, and the opportunity arose to purchase 300 Knight Street, Hastings from the Royston Trust Board. The name Cranford was chosen through a public competition, submitted by Mrs Veronica Robertson.
On 8 August 1982, Cranford Hospice opened its doors—the fourth hospice in New Zealand. Its official opening followed on 11 December 1982, when Governor-General Sir David Beattie formally opened the hospice at 300 Knight Street, Hastings, before more than 400 people, and became its Patron.
On 1 July 2017, Cranford Hospice was gifted to the Hawke’s Bay community by Presbyterian Support East Coast, becoming an independent charity—the Cranford Hospice Trust.
The need for specialist hospice care has grown considerably since 1982 and so has our team. Over the next 20 years, demand for palliative care in our region is expected to grow by 38%. The time has come to build a new purpose-built home for the future.
Official Opening Sir David Beattie