Fundraise & Get Involved

We need to raise over £8 million every year to provide outstanding Hospice care to the local community. To get involved with our fundraising activities, design your own, or make a donation, use the information on this page.

Bereavement and Coping with Loss

Bereavement is a major event that can turn your world upside down and it can hit you in ways that you may not be prepared for

Grieving is a highly personal and individual experience, and depends on many factors, including your personality, coping style, life experience, belief system and the nature of loss. No one quite knows how a bereavement will affect them, but we are here to try and support you and to help you find a way forward.

The grieving process takes time.  Healing happens gradually: it can’t be forced or hurried – and there is no ‘normal’ time for grieving/  Some people start to feel better in weeks or months.  For others the grieving process is measured in years.

Our range of services can support you through this difficult time. Within six to eight weeks of a patient’s death, we write to every family member and those who are important to them (if we have contact details) with information about the support we offer.

We are, of course, very aware that this might not be quite the right time for you to access our services, but please know you can contact us any time following the death of your loved one.

Please contact the Counselling and Support Service to talk through the support we can offer you on 01892 820525 or counselling@hospiceintheweald.org.uk 

Counselling session

Support and activities

Counselling
We are here to help you talk about your feelings and offer you support. Counselling is a talking therapy, it is an opportunity to help you find ways of coping with change and face the challenging effects of loss.  It is a chance to share and explore feelings or experiences that you may not feel able to share with family or friends.  Please contact the Counselling and Support Service on 01892 820525 to arrange an initial assessment for bereavement counselling.

Time to Be
Is an alternative to more traditional counselling and can offer support to those who feel counselling may not be quite appropriate for themselves.  Time to Be is a model of care which involves you in finding your own ways to cope with, and talk about, loss and bereavement.  It includes learning about relaxation and breathing techniques and about creating space for yourself.

 

My loved one died in another Hospice, can I access bereavement support?
Yes

Hospice in the Weald has an agreement with other Hospices in the UK. This means that if we are your local Hospice, and your loved one was cared for by a different Hospice in the UK, we will provide bereavement support to you free of charge.  

Counselling & Support Service
Coping with the loss public figures or celebrities

It is common to experience feelings of grief after the death of a public figure despite not holding a personal relationship with them. We often feel close to public figures who we might have connected with in some way during our lives. Their work or impact on this world can resonate with us, imprint on us, on our minds and in our memories.

Your feelings are very valid and grief can affect us in many different ways, even if you didn’t know the person you are grieving directly. You’ve formed personal attachments to them and a celebrity or public figure can play an important role in your life and remind you of your happiest or saddest moments.

  • Allow yourself to feel these emotions and be mindful of your feelings
  • Focus on the positive impact that person had on your life and how it may have shaped you
  • Talk to others about how you feel and explore your emotions – you may find you share similar feelings or can help each other cope

If things become too overwhelming then please seek help. Our counselling and support service can offer help to patients and their loved ones who may feel affected by death and dying.

There are also more services available to you through local and national services should you feel you need help, just ask.

Talking to children and young people about death and dying

Support for Families We can provide support and information for parents, grandparents and carers on how to talk to children, in relation to patients receiving Hospice care.

You can also read our resource on talking to Children about death and dying in relation to adult palliative and hospice care.

Talking to children and young people

Contacting us

If you would like to find out more about these events you can contact the Hospice’s Counselling and Support Service directly on 01892 820525 or by completing this form.

I am a

Reason For Referral / Comments

Support for children & young people

For more support for children and young people, please visit these resources:

Winstons Wish  /  Holding On, Letting Go  /  Jigsaw  /  Childhood Bereavement Network  /  Slideaway