St Helena Hospice provides specialist palliative and end of life care to local people facing incurable illness in north east Essex, supporting them, their families, friends and carers.

We provide individual care and total support wherever it is needed; at home, over the phone with our 24/7 advice line, and at the hospice. We support members of our community, helping them make their own choices and live with dignity. By focusing on their physical, emotional and spiritual needs, we aim to bring comfort and relief to all those who need it, offering the people individual care and total support, regardless of their diagnosis or personal circumstances.
 
With generous support from the Westhill Endowment Fund, our Spiritual Care Lead, Tim Leeson, was able to take part in a Celebrancy Training course, designed to equip attendees with comprehensive skills in modern celebrancy. The immersive training focused on creating and delivering unique and meaningful ceremonies for all occasions.

We know that supporting patients spiritually as they approach the end of life is vital and this training will ensure we can meet the spiritual needs of our patients, whether in the Inpatient Unit or within their own homes. Tim has gained knowledge and increased confidence to conduct special occasions and says;
 
“Thanks to the Westhill Endowment, I completed my celebrants’ training over the course of a week in November. The training was tremendously valuable, for a number of reasons.

Firstly, it gave me tools and resources to lead funerals and weddings with confidence. The expertise and experience of the course leaders meant that there was plenty to be learned, and I finished it with plenty of thoughts about how we can develop and improve on what we offer to our patients and their families.

Being a registered celebrant also means that our patients and their families know that they are getting a trained professional, who will follow industry standards and a code of conduct, when arranging funerals and weddings. These milestones carry tremendous emotional and spiritual significance, and this training means our patients and their families can be confident that we are taking them seriously, and want to do the very best for the people they love.”