About Us

The objective of St. Saviour's Medical Charity is to provide free private healthcare for people in the Folkestone & Hythe District, or the neighbourhood thereof, who are in need.

It does this in two ways :-

1) By providing full or partial grants (non-repayable) to residents of the Folkestone & Hythe District, or the surrounding areas, enabling them to obtain rapid private treatment if, in the opinion of their GP or Consultant, they are suffering loss of quality of life as a direct result of NHS waiting lists.

Such grants may be in part or full depending on the financial circumstances of the applicant. Medical necessity and financial hardship will be the criteria against which any application is judged. The Charity will meet your surgical needs regardless of whether or not you are working.

2) By making grants to institutions that provide such medical care, enabling them to purchase equipment and services to improve and take forward their work. Among recipients of grants in this category have been:

a) The Pilgrims Hospice, funding a home palliative advisory nurse.

b) Kent MS Therapy Centre.

c) Headway East Kent Head Injury Support.

d) The Celia Blakey Oncology Unit, William Harvey Hospital.

e) The FifthTrust.

f) Kent Air Ambulance Trust.

Information about grants to individuals

Grants, which are non-repayable, are made at the discretion of the Charity's Trustees. No grant can be made if the applicant has already received a grant in the previous 5 years, unless exceptional circumstances exist.

Grants are made only for treatments that involve surgical or medical procedures. Grants are not made for counselling, physiotherapy, psychiatry or treatments using 'alternative medicines'.

St. Saviour's Medical Charity is not involved in the choice of Consultant, treatment or Hospital. This remains entirely the prerogative of the Patient’s G.P. and any Consultant referred to by them.

There are a number of private hospitals serving the local area, where treatment is provided.

Application forms can be downloaded from from the Online Resources & Forms page. They may also be obtained from most G.P. surgeries, Consultants and St. Saviour's Medical Charity Office.

A private referral will need to be made by the G.P. to a Consultant who operates at a private Hospital.

After the initial consultation the completed application form should be forwarded, with a copy of the Consultant's clinic letter, to St. Saviour's Medical Charity office. Normally a meeting will be then arranged at your home with one of our volunteer Visitors to discuss your case for a grant.

Following that meeting you will be notified as to whether or not a non-repayable grant is to be offered. If our offer is made and accepted the Consultant and Hospital will then be notified and they will contact you to agree a date for the treatment.

How are we able to help you?

At one time, the Trustees operated St. Saviour's Hospital. It was sold in 1989 and the cash obtained was invested to produce the income that we use to make grants. This is the sole source of our funds, we receive nothing from the Government and we make no appeals to the General Public. Our running costs are low. All Trustees are volunteers, motivated only by a desire to help others. They receive no payment for the work they do. As a result over 90% of all income received is available to provide grants.

About our Trustees

All our Trustees are local people. They possess diverse skills which relate to the successful work of the Charity. The Charity welcomes Trustees from all races, creeds, ethnicities, sexual orientation and backgrounds.

The Background to the Charity

Well over 150 years ago, a group of eminent men and women, including Mr. Gladstone, established the first Church of England religious community for women to be formed for 300 years. They were named The Sisters of Mercy.

In 1854 Florence Nightingale recruited the Sisters and a party of them went to the Crimea to nurse the wounded. After the war they founded the first St. Saviour's Hospital, in Euston, treating cancer patients. At the turn of the century The Sisters converted it to a general hospital for ladies of limited means and called in a committee of local businessmen to manage the finances. Later it opened its doors to a wider range of patients and started to take private paying patients. It continued operating through the First and Second World Wars. The Sisters of Mercy folded through lack of recruits and the hospital subsequently was operated by several different Religious Orders and finally by the Community of the Presentation.

After the Second World War the London inner ring road was built through the site of the hospital and the Nuns moved to Hythe in 1963. Hythe people replaced the London businessmen as Trustees. Over the years to 1989 the Committee enlarged and modernised the hospital. The remaining Nuns however grew too old to continue and lay professional medical staff were employed to continue the work. The hospital remained a charity though the majority of its patients were private. Any profit made was used to help those who could not afford to pay for treatment. The hospital was profitable but not overly so. Few charity patients could be helped.

In 1989 the Trustees sold the hospital and formed St. Saviour's Medical Charity, investing the proceeds of the sale, which now permit more charitable grants to be made.

Closure of St. Saviour's Hospital, Hythe - do not be deterred from applying.

Prospective applicants should not be deterred by the closure of St. Saviour's Hospital, Hythe. Although historically the bulk of the Charity's individual applicants received treatment at that hospital the Charity plays no part in the choice of location. This decision is left to the Consultant and the Patient. There are a number of providers within reasonable distance of the Folkestone & Hythe District but, if necessary, the Charity may fund treatment further afield.