Search

  • Visit & Contact
  • The Mill
  • Online Shop
  • Log In
  • My Account
  • Log Out

Your local charity in Lancashire

Patrons: Sir Bill Beaumont, Sir Duncan Nichol, Dr Lynne Livesey, Dr St John Crean, Mark Lawrenson and Tisha Merry

Donate
  • Our Care
    • We help patients and families have quality of life, to the end of life.

    • Column
      • Back
      • Covid-19 updates
      • the work of the charity is only possible because of the support it receives from the local community.

        At the hospice
      • In the community
      • Lymphoedema clinic
        • Lymphoedema in babies, children and adolescents
    • Column
      • Carers & family
      • Befriending service
      • Bereavement and Remembrance
      • Compassionate Communities
  • Support Us
    • Our care is only possible because of the support we receive.

    • Column
      • Back
      • The work of the charity is only possible because of the support it receives from the local community.

        Fundraise
        • Organise a fundraiser
        • Give money raised
        • Join in a hospice event
        • Fundraising for businesses
      • Donate
        • Donation Form
        • Make a monthly donation
        • Make a one-off donation
        • Donate money raised
        • Donate in your will
        • Pledge Gift Aid
      • Lottery
        • Lottery terms and conditions, legal information and advice
        • Join our lottery
        • Lottery results
        • Gift cards and wedding favours
        • Update us or add a number
      • Wills
    • Column
      • Shops
        • Find your nearest shop
        • Donate to our shops
        • Online Shop
      • Volunteering
      • Raffles
      • Yellow Ribbons
  • Events
  • About Us
    • We are an independent, local charity working in Central Lancashire.

    • Column
      • Back
      • Our Purpose
      • Our Team
      • Work for us
      • Volunteer with us
    • Column Two
      • The Mill
      • Room Hire
      • Feedback
  • News
  • Resources & Training
  • Tributes
  • Donate
St Catherine's Hospice > The Mill, St Catherine’s Park, celebrates a year in business!

The Mill, St Catherine’s Park, celebrates a year in business!

The Mill birthday cake 3The Mill, St Catherine’s Park, is celebrating its first successful year in business!

The Mill first opened its doors to the public exactly a year ago on November 24 2015, when the first cup of coffee was brewed by Good Morning Britain star and TV broadcaster Ranvir Singh.

Since then The Mill has welcomed around 60,000 visitors to enjoy a drink or a meal in the café or activities and therapies in the rooms upstairs.

To mark their special birthday, each customer to the café this week will receive a raffle ticket giving them the chance of winning a fabulous birthday cake handcrafted by The Mill’s patisserie chef Tony Culliney.

The pioneering concept of The Mill is to open up hospice care by welcoming local people into the heart of the St Catherine’s setting. The cosy café, therapy and meeting rooms create inviting, familiar, relaxing surroundings to support people with life-shortening illnesses through information and advice and, at the same time, are a welcoming space for local people to enjoy.

With the opening of The Mill and the development of St Catherine’s Park, in partnership with South Ribble Borough Council, the message to local people is one of ‘welcome’, with the aim that the fear or anxiety some people feel about hospices can be dispelled.

Operating as a social enterprise with all profits used to support the specialised care of St Catherine’s Hospice the venture is helping to make the charity more sustainable for the future.

The Mill Outside has also gone from strength to strength in 2015, providing the catering for a wide variety of functions and events out in the community, including the prestigious Royal Lancashire Show. They have smashed their target in the hospice’s 30th anniversary Give a Gift appeal of catering for 30 events – with 41 catered for so far.

Nicola Hanmer, Commercial Catering Manager at St Catherine’s Hospice and The Mill, said: “It has been an incredible first year at The Mill and we’d like to say a huge thank you to all our wonderful customers who have supported the new venture and helped get it off to a flying start.

“It is wonderful that not only have the wider community embraced what we are offering here, but that St Catherine’s patients and their families are finding it so beneficial too. We know that many people enjoy being able to come away from the main hospice and enjoy time together as a family in the café. It creates that all important feeling of normality, which families tell us means such a lot.”

Along with the locally sourced, seasonal dishes served up in the successful café, over the past year The Mill has also established itself as a vibrant community hub, with all sorts of events and activities organised on a regular basis from the upstairs rooms.

Sessions include everything from exercise classes like pilates and yoga, to advice workshops and drop-ins hosted by organisations including Civil Service Local, Lancashire Dementia Voices and Barclays Digital Eagles.

The Mill team celebrate a year in business

Local businesses are also utilising the space available – with rooms upstairs hired on a long-term arrangement by The Therapy Company and Feet Matters to offer a range of treatments including counselling, cognitive behavioural therapy, massage and podiatry and chiropody.

Lynn Kelly, Director of Knowledge Exchange Services at St Catherine’s Hospice and The Mill, said: “Over the past 12 months The Mill has gone from strength to strength, setting itself up as an attractive community venue which has hosted everything IT skills workshops and solicitors’ drop-in sessions to watercolour classes and meditation.

“The Mill is benefiting people on many levels and we’re delighted to be reaching out to more people in our community when they pass through the doors.”

Stephen Greenhalgh, Chief Executive of St Catherine’s Hospice, thanked everyone for their support of The Mill during its first year in business, one of the many ways the community has given its wonderful backing to the charity during its 30th anniversary year in 2015.

Stephen said: “Opening The Mill last year started an exciting new chapter for St Catherine’s and we have been overwhelmed by the fabulous response from local people who have poured into our café and appreciated our other facilities.

“We warmly welcome visitors from near and far to become part of the inspiring St Catherine’s story, making a real difference to local lives at the most poignant times. Every cup of coffee sold helps friends and neighbours at times when it matters most.”

The Mill, St Catherine’s Park Timeline

2008: The old farm buildings were purchased by St Catherine’s

2009/2010: Scoping study with the local community highlighted options for development.

2011/12 The Mill concept emerged and a comprehensive funding bid was submitted into a highly competitive Department of Health capital fund as well as to other trusts; design work continued.

2013: St Catherine’s won sufficient funds to start the project and in November work begins.

24th November 2014: The Mill opens to the public.

The Mill, St Catherine’s Park: A year in business fact-file

60,000 visitors to The Mill
43,800 cups of St Catherine’s Blend coffee served
386 events hosted in The Mill
41 outside events catered for
73 events booked for 2016.

Back to News

Share with your friends!

Newsletter Signup

Sign up to our newsletter and receieve updates on our charity, successful fundraising events and much more!

Sign up

Sign up to our newsletter

Sign up to our newsletter and receieve updates on our charity, successful fundraising events and much more!

    Required
    Required

    Count me in!

    We'd love to keep in touch with you letting you know how your wonderful support is making a difference to St Catherine's, and informing you about other events and campaigns which might be of interest. We’re very proud of our ethical approach to fundraising and, rest assured, your information will be stored securely and we will not pass your details to any third party.

    Please let us know your preferred way(s) for us to contact you:

    Post
    Email
    Phone
    SMS Message
    For further information about how we use your data, please click here to read our privacy statement.

    Count me in!

    You’re a valued member of the St Catherine’s community and we’d love to keep in touch with all the latest news, events and campaigns from the charity. Let us know the best way to contact you by clicking below.

    Count me in!

    Visit Us

    Connect with us

    Connect with us on social media to keep up to date with the daily news from St Catherine’s and our cafe and community hub The Mill.

    Rate and review our services

    Patrons: Sir Bill Beaumont, Sir Duncan Nichol, Dr Lynne Livesey, Dr St John Crean, Mark Lawrenson and Tisha Merry

    © 2022 St Catherine’s Hospice Reg Charity No: 512186 Company Limited by Guarantee: 1602467

    • Privacy policy and use of Cookies
    • Sitemap

    St Catherine’s Hospice, St Catherine’s Park, Lostock Lane, Lostock Hall, Preston, PR5 5XU

    Designed and built by BlueWrenBlueWren

    Added to your basket

    Continue Shopping Go to Basket

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience. OptionsOkay, thank you
    Privacy & Cookies Policy

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
    Non-necessary
    Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
    SAVE & ACCEPT