Beacon of Hope, a Welsh charity which provided home support to terminal illness sufferers, has gone into voluntary liquidation with the loss of 17 jobs after public donations dried up.

Its income had actually been on the rise over recent years, from £200,093 in 2007 to £393,000 recorded in its last annual report – but its spending had also increased and overtook its revenue.

Kerry Bailey, joint liquidator and a partner at PKF, explained that while Beacon of Hope’s nursing services were funded by the Health Authority and the Welsh Assembly, its ancillary services relied upon public donations.

“Unfortunately these had proved insufficient to cover the outgoings and, despite a public appeal for donations and the support of the dedicated and hardworking staff, the directors were left with no alternative in the face of the resulting insolvency but to place it into liquidation,” she said. 

Patients of the charity, which was founded in 2009 under its full name Beacon of Hope – Ffal Gobaith, have been given over to government health officials.

A spokesman for PKF told civilsociety.co.uk that the 17 frontline staff losing their jobs would also be joined by an indeterminate number of temporary ‘bank’ staff.

“This case outlines how important public support really is to charities, especially as the financial climate is still so tough,” the spokesman added.

Beacon of Hope offered both practical and intangible support to people with terminal and life-limiting illnesses in Ceredigion and the immediate surrounding area, as well as the Dyfi valley.

It was active in the communities of Aberystwyth, Cardigan and Machynlleth and had a charitable mission to “enable people to live the best quality of life in the time they have left”.

Beacon of Hope had been chosen by the vice-chancellor of Aberystwyth University as her charity of the year for 2012/13. Its founder, retired teacher Elizabeth Murphy, was awarded an MBE for services to the community in Ceredigion in the 2008 Queen's birthday honours list.