Keech communications team wins national award

We’re very excited to share that Keech Hospice Care has won the CommsHero award, picking up the trophy in the ‘Lastminute.com’ category. This award, which celebrates the work of communications teams everywhere, recognised our team’s ability to react quickly and share important messages when unexpected events happen—and that’s exactly what our team did last year when the news broke that the beloved Sycamore Gap tree had been destroyed.

A group of Keech Hospice Care charity trekkers were hiking along Hadrian’s Wall in Northumberland when they heard the terrible news that the ancient tree they had seen the day previous, had been hacked down in an act of violence.

The Sycamore Gap tree was one of the UK’s most famous landmarks, and our trekkers had captured beautiful memories with it on camera just before the tragedy. Understanding how special this was, we worked quickly to get the news out. Within hours, we had shared the trekkers’ story with the press, making sure their connection to the tree was highlighted across news outlets. In doing so, the tree was honoured and remembered, and the world got to hear about Keech.

The Lastminute.com award is given to organisations that show great communication in difficult situations, and the judges were impressed with how our team handled this unexpected event. They loved how we adapted so quickly, making sure our message was shared far and wide in such a short time.

At Keech Hospice Care, we’re always ready to communicate with our supporters, patients, and families—no matter what. Winning this award is a huge achievement for us and we are enormously grateful to CommsHero and all the judges for the honour.
Thank you to our amazing team and community for supporting us every step of the way.

You can read the news story of the Keech Hospice Care trekkers and Sycamore Gap on the BBC website.