Chanelle joined Havens Hospices in May 2019 as Head of Wellbeing and Community Engagement, and became Director of Clinical Services in March 2023.

A trusted and valued colleague of Havens Hospices, Chanelle joined the charity in May 2019 with extensive knowledge and experience across the statutory and voluntary sector including children’s centres, women’s refuges, crisis outreach settings and child protection services. During her time with Havens Hospices, Chanelle has completed a Masters with Distinction (the dissertation was the first in the UK to look at domestic abuse within a hospice context), alongside the Hospice UK Strategic Leadership Programme and several other management and mentoring courses.

Huge strides have been made to our Wellbeing and Safeguarding provision under Chanelle’s leadership, including merging all therapeutic services under one referral system, and an inclusive review of spiritual care. Both of these appeared as posters at the Hospice UK Conference in 2021, at which Chanelle also presented a session alongside her colleague, Louise McKay.

Taking on her new role, Chanelle says, “I’m so proud to be leading Havens Hospices as Director of Clinical Services. I originally joined in 2019, when the charity was on the cusp of a huge cultural shift. We are still on that journey. It’s exciting to see how much we’ve evolved, and how much opportunity there is to do even more for local families.

“I am not a registered nurse, but I’ll work closely with our highly skilled care leadership team on the responsibilities, decision-making and legal registrations required to provide our palliative and supportive care.

“Whilst a large element of hospices is about the physical and medical needs of a patient, what makes our care so unique is that it’s centred around a person. Originally pioneered by Dame Cicely Saunders – social worker and doctor – she introduced the concept of “total pain,” which included addressing the physical, emotional, social, and spiritual dimensions of distress.

“A Director of Clinical Services with a background in social care is a new approach for us at Havens Hospices that feels different to what is expected within the sector. But hospice culture is changing, recognising that collaboration and innovation are what’s required to ensure we’re meeting the ever-shifting needs of our patients, community and partners.”