<p>Palliative care services have developed rapidly over the past 30 years and the palliative needs of cancer patients are now well understood and managed by specialist palliative care services. Although such services are firmly established within the National Health Service and the hospice setting, private hospitals have arguably been slower to embrace this speciality. This article describes the establishment of a palliative care service within a private hospital and illustrates the facilitation of collaboration between the independent, voluntary and statutory sectors.</p>