Sue Ryder searches for volunteers to support service for grieving people

Sue Ryder Grief Kind Spaces opened in Bourne and in Stamford last year and following its success the charity is looking for more volunteers so that they can expand the service and help reduce the isolation and loneliness felt by many people following a bereavement.

As well as recruiting residents for the Stamford and Bourne spaces, Sue Ryder is also looking for people in Peterborough to support a new Grief Kind Space which is set to open in the city shortly.

Paddy Jelen from Lincolnshire volunteers at one of Sue Ryder Grief Kind Spaces, which provide safe, supportive and relaxed sessions for people to share their own experiences with others.

“As part of our roles we listen and support. We have a very good and supportive team of volunteers, and it is rewarding to see the positive change in people who visit our Grief Kind Space,” she said.

“I chose to volunteer as I felt I have first-hand experience which might be helpful. My husband spent seven weeks in Sue Ryder Thorpe Hall Hospice in Peterborough prior to his death in 2021, and my daughter died at the age of 23 in 2005. I hope that given the life experiences I have had I am able in some way to offer support to others.”

Volunteers joining Sue Ryder’s Grief Kind Spaces are offered training to equip them in their role and don’t need any formal qualifications. Volunteers just need to have a few hours to spare a week, be willing to listen and support people in their own communities who may be struggling to come to terms with bereavement.

Melanie Wade has been supporting the opening of the Sue Ryder Grief Kind Space in Stamford. She said her own experiences of grief inspired her to volunteer. “My own experience of bereavement was isolating and lonely and made me recognise that there is hope and possibility even when we are poleaxed by the death of a loved one.

“My mother died 38 years ago, my sister seven years ago. They were two of the most important women in my life and I literally could not see a way forward. I was completely lost and believe that these deaths have enabled me to fully understand when a person is struggling.”

In channelling her own experiences into her volunteering, Melanie has worked alongside fellow Sue Ryder volunteers to create a safe, warm and welcoming space for people to talk about their own experiences of grief.

“I feel it is so important to provide support and an opportunity for people to express their grief in order to find a way forward,” Melanie added.

“Volunteering with Sue Ryder’s Grief Kind Spaces is a profound experience. The most fulfilling element is observing how people are able to progress, very slowly, taking steps that they would never have felt remotely possible when they first joined us.”

“I have observed the difference the Sue Ryder Grief Kind Space makes to our visitors. I have seen how they start to engage and open up, having been completely shut down and closed. Some of our visitors have no one to talk to or are unable to share their grief and they say that the only time they do this is when they come along to our session.”

Paddy says she hopes Sue Ryder Grief Kind Spaces will help encourage more people to speak about death too. “I feel in the UK we are constrained when talking about death and it is helpful to be more open about it. At our Sue Ryder Grief Kind Space, we offer an ear for those who want to talk and be listened to.”

Melanie agrees, “Being able to provide a listening, supportive space for people who are grieving is invaluable. In this country it is my experience that we do not deal with death and bereavement very well and mostly it is not talked about. This creates a very isolating and lonely time for someone when they need support the most.”

“Sue Ryder Grief Kind Spaces strives to provide that support. We need more volunteers to join us as they are crucial to the success of the whole initiative.”

To register your interest in becoming a Grief Kind volunteer please email [email protected] or visit sueryder.org/GKVolunteer

For details and locations of existing Sue Ryder Grief Kind Spaces visit www.sueryder.org/Spaces

For anyone who is grieving, Sue Ryder offers free online support at sueryder.org/grief