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The Sussex Beacon is a Brighton-based charity and registered hospice founded in 1992 that provides specialist palliative, end-of-life, and respite care for people living with HIV. It is evolving to become the UK's first dedicated LGBTQ+ hospice, offering inpatient, community-based services, and mental health support to address HIV-related stigma and health inequalities. It is also g10 group's charity of the year. We caught up with CEO Rachel Brett recently to talk about the charity.
Why focus on LGBTQ+ care?
The Sussex Beacon was founded by the LGBTQ+ community in response to the AIDS crisis,
to be a place of safety, care, and dignity for people dying of AIDS-related illnesses and those
living with HIV.
Thanks to advances in treatment, fewer people now need inpatient HIV care. So, we're
evolving and giving back to the very community that came together to build the Beacon, at
such a critical time.
Hospice UK Report ‘I Just Want To Be Me’ highlights the need for improved accessibility for
trans and gender-diverse people, who report that they often face hospice care as
exclusionary and insensitive. These experiences are also mirrored more broadly in the wider
community as reported in a national survey on LGBTQ+ care, highlighted recently by
Attitude Magazine
The Sussex Beacon is uniquely positioned to change that. We will offer fully inclusive,
specialist palliative and end-of-life care for the LGBTQ+ community and support other UK
hospices to do the same. Importantly, we remain committed to providing expert HIV care
alongside this expanded mission.
Can LGBTQ+ people not living with HIV access the Beacon’s community services?
Our community-based services will remain, supporting individuals living with HIV, but we will
naturally be building upon our existing links with specialist LGBTQ+ organisations to ensure
patients can be referred or signposted to other specialist provision.
Will people living with HIV still have access to clinical care?
Absolutely. The new service is an expansion, not a replacement. Our commitment to people living with HIV remains unchanged.
How is the service being funded?
Like most hospices, we rely on a mixed model: NHS contracts and community fundraising. This new chapter will need more support, not less.
So, do you still need to fundraise?
Yes, now more than ever. As we transition, your support is vital.
You can help by:
- Making a donation
- Volunteering
- Supporting our fundraising events and those organised by our community partners
- Joining Team Beacon at the Brighton Half Marathon
- Holding your own fundraising events, including office fundraisers, personal challenges, etc
- Spreading the word about our mission
Together, we can create a truly inclusive hospice for the future.
Is The Sussex Beacon the only hospice like this in the UK?
Yes. The Sussex Beacon will be the UK’s only dedicated LGBTQ+ hospice with a specialist focus on HIV care. This is a unique opportunity to honour our roots and shape the future of compassionate, inclusive care.
Where do people live to be able access your services?
Our services are available to people living anywhere within Sussex.