Living Well Centre
Living with a life-limiting illness can be challenging and prevent you from doing the things that matter most to you. Our goal is to help you to live well.
The team at the Living Well Centre will help you to:
- Focus on what living well means to you.
- Identify your concerns and priorities.
- Find ways to do the things that matter most to you.
There is a timetable of activities, that include physical, psychological, emotional and spiritual support. One of the team will discuss with you what activities may benefit you after completing the individual assessment of your needs and we can incorporate future planning.
We also understand that carers, family and friends can be affected by a diagnosis and we are committed to supporting you too. We have a range of services to support anyone who is a carer to one of our patients. which includes a Carers Café and other activities and support services.
Timetable
We have a range of sessions and activities that occur throughout the week, or one-to-one sessions that can be arranged with the Living Well Centre team.
A friendly, informal, sociable session where you can chat with other people. Refreshments are provided. You might like to explore our beautiful grounds and meet our donkeys.
Our counselling service provides a confidential space with a trained professional to help you make sense of, and adjust to life, at a challenging time. Counselling can help you to improve your quality of life, feel more in control, understand your choices and improve your relationships.
We offer 8 sessions, each 50 minutes long, focusing on the impact of your diagnosis and the effects it has had on you and those close to you. Our counselling service can be provided in your own home, at the hospice, face to face, via phone or online.
A gently guided writing session designed to explore personal experiences and enhance wellbeing. No previous writing experience is needed.
We have a range of services to support anyone close to any patient of St Peter and St James Hospice. There is a weekly Carers Café where people in similar situations can meet and socialise. Other support is available so come in and talk to us.
A lively, creative session to express yourself and enjoy the company of others in a therapeutic environment. It is not an art lesson and you do not need any previous artistic experience.
Our Welfare Advice service can help with any practical issues, such as applying for grants and benefits, financial planning, debt advice, housing and transport issues (for instance getting a blue disability parking badge). We can help with any pension changes and life insurance or critical illness cover and ‘death in service’ where this is required.
We can signpost to other services for support with will-writing and funeral planning if needed.
This weekly session, held every Thursday from 9.30 – 13.30, is for carers from our community to come together in a friendly and social environment.
Our complementary therapist will be available to offer a free massage, aromatherapy or reflexology session, and our welfare officer will be on hand to offer advice and support. We have occasional guest speakers and organised seasonal craft workshops.
Refreshments and lunch are available from our Cafe.
Our Rehabilitation Team work with you to improve your quality of life, providing exercises, education and, where necessary, equipment.
This service aims to:
- Increase your confidence in your mobility
- Help you to do the activities of daily living and adapt to your condition.
- Help control symptoms such as pain and breathlessness.
- Support you to return home after a stay on our inpatient unit.
The café gives bereaved people an opportunity to meet with others who are bereaved, to share experiences of grief, and to provide each other with comfort & support.
This service can include aromatherapy, massage and reflexology sessions. The therapist will discuss with you what treatment may be of benefit to you and adapt it to suit your needs. Alongside any medical treatment that you may be having, complementary therapies may help to ease a variety of symptoms.
When thinking about your life there may be a story or message you wish to share with those close to you. Our Hospice Biographers help to make digital recordings of your story or message, which is then transferred to several memory sticks. These are then given to you, so that you can give them to those close to you, at a time of your choosing.
We work with the charity, The Hospice Biographers, which provides specialised training to our volunteers. Our Hospice Biography volunteers record with care and sensitivity on a private, one-to-one basis, using professional recording equipment.
When living with a life-limiting illness, people often reflect on their life experiences and questions can arise. You might wonder what your life has been about, what matters most to you, what kind of funeral you would like, or what will happen next.
Our spiritual care team can help you make sense of these questions or discuss confidentially anything you feel you need to. If you are of faith, we can ask our local community faith leaders to support you. We have a quiet, reflective space called The Sanctuary at the Hospice which you are very welcome to visit.
Our physiotherapist works with you to improve your quality of life, providing exercises, education and, where necessary, equipment such as walking aids.
This service aims to:
- Increase your confidence in your mobility
- Help you to do the activities of daily living and adapt to your condition.
- Help control symptoms such as pain and breathlessness
- Support you to return home after a stay on our inpatient unit.
Our social worker is a key member of the hospice team and can work with other agencies to help you explore options and make choices about your care and support, according to your needs and what matters most to you.
Our social worker can support you with your practical, social and emotional needs and is available to your family and friends as well. This might include facilitating challenging conversations, how to communicate with your children or young relatives, plans for guardianship and tackling the effects of isolation.
Practicalities
Our Living Well Centre is a welcoming space, with level access, set in beautiful surroundings with views of The South Downs and our own ancient woodland with an accessible path.
Whenever you visit the Living Well Centre you might wish to extend your session by a walk in the woods, lunch in the cafe or with a visit to our Donkeys, Dylan and Dudley, or simply have a cup of tea on the deck enjoying the view.
Volunteer Taxi Service
If you do not have your own transport we may be able to arrange for one of our volunteers to collect you from your home. There is no charge for this service but if you wish to contribute financially to help us with our costs then please let us know.
The Watering Hole
The hospice offers nutritious and varied meals for a healthy-balanced diet and are very happy to accommodate dietary needs and preferences. There is a cost for food, but this remains very good value for money. Fresh drinking water, soft drinks and hot beverages are always available free of charge.
Contact Us
If you would like to attend any of the sessions or activities at the Living Well Centre, have any questions, or would like to meet a member of the team, please contact us via our contact page.