Oldham Reverend Receives BEM

An Oldham reverend received a British Empire Medal for his role at the world-famous Francis House end-of-life children’s hospice in Didsbury.

Francis House offers care for children who have life-limiting conditions and provides support to their families.

Reverend David Stephen Ireland, 70, who is originally from Saddleworth, was “shocked” at receiving the “prestigious” award.

“I don’t know who nominated me for the award. Several people have to make the nomination. It was completely unexpected and very pleasant to win, but it was a team effort. Francis House has received a lot of publicity as a result.

“It’s a great honour to receive the award. With the BEM, they arrange a local presentation and then recipients are invited to a garden party at the King’s palace in May.”

Reverend Ireland joined the board of trustees at the hospice in 1994. In 1995, he was ordained and became minister at the United Reformed Church in Oldham.

Around this time, he took on the role of chief executive officer at Francis House. The former architect served in the role for 20 years.

“The hospice is a place of fun, like a holiday house, but there are times when it’s very sad. On the whole, kids at the hospice enjoy themselves,” he said. “When a child dies, we have rainbow rooms where the family take over the suite. It’s like being in a hospital mortuary, but it’s just a normal bedroom.”

When he started at the hospice, it was a seven-bedded unit with a turnover of £1.25 million. There were 38 members of staff and debts of £1 million to pay off.

He said there are now 120 members of staff and that last year’s turnover was over £5 million due to the “generosity” of the people of the Northwest, UK. At present, Francis House looks after 480 youngsters.

Francis House has become known worldwide. It has been involved in establishing hospices in other countries including Belarus, Bosnia and Japan. The centre opened in 1990 and has supported over 1,500 children and their families in total.

Until the mid-1990s, terminally ill children generally didn’t live past the age of 16, but medical advances have meant that many now live into their twenties. 

“About 38 percent of our users are Asian Muslims. It’s a great place for interfaith work,” the reverend added. “It’s been a wonderful place to work. People of all faiths and no faiths come to Francis House.”