Hospice in the Weald, Tunbridge Wells
The team at Hospice in the Weald
We’re really pleased to be running The Bereavement Journey® at Hospice in the Weald. It’s become a valuable part of our bereavement support, adding to and strengthening the care we already offer.
We noticed that the same themes were arising repeatedly in our drop-in sessions and wanted to offer something more structured and positive, while still keeping that element of peer support. The Bereavement Journey® was a good match because we already had much of what we needed in place: our chaplaincy, counselling supervision and the hospice space. It also meant we could build on the skills and experience our team already has.
Our team has found the structure really helpful. There’s very little set-up, so we can spend our time preparing ourselves and being present with the group, rather than spending time on paperwork and processes. The Participant Manuals mean people can take things away and come back to them when they feel more able to take it in, and we can gently suggest particular sections to revisit later if someone is struggling with a specific part of their grief. The option of making the films available to anyone who misses a session or if they want to go back over a theme again in their own time has been especially useful too. It also helps to be able to refer people to the national online course (offered by AtaLoss) if they can’t make our timings, or if they have a family member who might benefit.
We’ve also had lovely feedback from participants, particularly about being with others who really understand what bereavement can feel like:
“A great opportunity to help myself process my feelings. It helps you realise how it is the same journey, but different for all of us.”
“I felt privileged to participate. I have gained so much comfort and feel empowered to continue meeting and volunteering once the course finishes.”
The programme also helps us get to know people and, where it feels right, link them into our wider support—whether that’s spiritual care, counselling, or other hospice services. We listen carefully to what participants and facilitators tell us, and one thing we heard again and again was that people wanted more time to talk. Our on-site café has really helped with that: we encourage everyone to meet for lunch beforehand, which gives space for informal chat, strengthens connections, and means we can start the session calmly and on time.