In recognition of their tireless work in the community, the St Luke’s Hospice Bereavement Support Team was honoured with the ‘Team of the Year’ award at the Harrow Heroes Awards this year.
The team’s dedication to supporting bereaved families and individuals in Harrow and Brent has had a profound impact on the community, offering hope to those experiencing the most difficult of times. Harrow Online spoke with the team about what this award means to them, their essential work, and their future goals.
1. How does it feel to be recognised as the ‘Team of the Year’ at the Harrow Heroes Awards? What does this award mean to your team?
“We are extremely proud to achieve this award, and it is a meaningful acknowledgement of the wonderful care and support our trained bereavement volunteers provide. We continue to be impressed by the outstanding commitment of our volunteers to training, supervision, and supporting bereaved members of our community.”
2. Can you tell us about the role your team plays in the community and how you support bereaved individuals and families across Harrow and Brent?
“St Luke’s Hospice Bereavement Service supports families and carers that have been known to us. Our team of 30 volunteers are an integral part of St. Luke’s Bereavement Service and play a vital role in the running of many aspects of the service. They provide confidential, reliable, and free support to families and friends that have been known to us. They provide a safe space for someone to share and normalise their grief by actively listening, carefully and without judgement. This can be on the telephone or face-to-face. Volunteers dedicate their time to meeting people individually on a regular basis, sometimes for up to a year.
“As well as one-to-one face-to-face or telephone support, we also have our volunteer-led monthly Walk & Talk group, which means people can have informal support and meet with people in a similar situation. It also helps those who are experiencing social isolation. We have monthly relaxation groups and retreat days and a ‘Coffee & Catch Up’ group too. Our volunteers have a range of skillsets, including musicians who play at our Remembrance events, but they also help with administration tasks, including writing cards to send on the anniversary of a death.”
3. What are some of the biggest challenges your team faces when providing bereavement support, and how do you overcome them to ensure families never feel alone in their grief?
“Navigating bereavement can be a challenge, as people have different experiences and require varying levels of support, come from different backgrounds, and hold diverse beliefs. Our team acknowledges these differences, respects them, and adapts to ensure that everyone feels comfortable and understood. No two experiences of loss are the same, and we work hard to meet the unique needs of each person we support.
“We find ways to always be available, whether through a phone call, a message, or a conversation. Our focus is on building strong, ongoing relationships, so people feel supported throughout. It’s really important we can get the message to people that support is available, so having enough volunteers to contact people initially by telephone to offer them the service is a big part of what we do. Having our team of Bereavement Support Volunteers providing reliable support means we can support people who have been bereaved, quickly and without long waiting lists.”
4. Your volunteers are essential to your work. Can you share more about the training and support they receive, and how this contributes to the success of the service you provide?
“After an initial 12-hour training programme over two weekends and evenings, volunteers also commit to further regular ongoing training throughout the year and six-weekly support for themselves. This reflective practice is an opportunity to share how they are coping themselves in a safe, supportive, and confidential space. Staff are also always available.
“We receive wonderful feedback on how volunteer support helps people move forward in their bereavement. Some people who have accessed the service then decide to go on to become a volunteer themselves. Our volunteers are reliable and dependable, many have been with us for several years. We simply wouldn’t have a service without them.”
5. Looking ahead, what are your team’s future goals, and how can the community continue to support St Luke’s Bereavement Support services?
“Looking ahead, a key goal for our team is to continue to strengthen our community connections and, through the support we offer, contribute to a greater understanding that hospices are here to provide holistic care for both patients and their families. We want to ensure that all carers and relatives of patients know they can turn to us for support. Bereavement support can be helpful when navigating the challenges of grief, offering a safe space during a difficult time.
“The support from our community is vital to our work, and we simply couldn’t provide our services without it. Support comes in many forms, such as donations (online or by phone), participating in events, or donating items for our shops. Each contribution helps fund our free services and enables us to reach more people. Even simple actions like following us on social media or signing up for our newsletters can make a significant difference.”
Chris Mitchell is the founder and editor of Harrow Online, Harrow’s leading local news platform.
He launched Harrow Online in 2010 as a Facebook page sharing local news and information. Since then, it has grown into a trusted source for breaking news, crime, council decisions, planning, transport, business and community stories across the borough.
Harrow Online reaches hundreds of thousands of readers each month and has a social media audience of more than 200,000 followers.
For news tips, press releases or enquiries, contact Chris at info@harrowonline.org.
