15 May 2023

Local hospice Katharine House was delighted to welcome new CEO Emma Radley into its fold last week.

Emma previously worked at national child bereavement charity Winston's Wish, joining the organisation as Director of Fundraising and leaving seven years later as Chief Operating Officer. She considers it an absolute honour to have worked with colleagues over the years to support children and young people from across the UK after the death of someone close to them.

During her career, Emma has also worked for the Oxford University Hospitals (OUH) Trust a number of times, most significantly in the fundraising team when the children's hospital was being built – even going on site in a hard hat and high vis vest – and is incredibly proud of the hospital that is so well used today. 

Emma said she couldn’t wait to get started at Katharine House, which is so highly respected in its community.

She said: "Having used both adult and children's hospices for my family over the years, I am passionate about the life that hospices can bring to patients and families facing the hardest of times.

"I have seen with my own eyes that hospices are a place to live, not just a place to die, and the relief of arriving in one from a hospital setting is palpable. The care and love that can be afforded to patients' families in a hospice setting is so incredibly important and just not possible in the acute setting. 

“I hope to play my part in ensuring that the exceptional care and compassion that the hospice is known for continues, whilst working to enable more and more people to benefit from it when they need it most. Hospices rely so much on their community in order to survive, but they are also for their community. I hope to ensure that it is a synergistic relationship."

Emma lives in Witney, West Oxfordshire, with her husband, two daughters and dog. Asked what she likes to do in her spare time, Emma said: "We have learnt over the years that spending time together, making memories and taking lots of photos is the most important past time – although that doesn't always go down well with teenagers!"

Related pages

• To find out more about the work we do, read What we do or explore our For Patients and Families pages.
• If you want to take part in a fundraising events for Katharine House Hospice, visit our events page. 
• To receive regular news about development at the hospice and fundraising events, please sign up to our digital newsletter.