Northumberland hospice to open new Wellbeing Centre

The charity is opening a new purpose-designed Wellbeing Centre on the Greensfield Industrial Estate, the first of its kind within a 30-mile radius.

HospiceCare will move out of Castleside House on Narrowgate and into Greensfield House on May 10.

The transformation of the old social services building will mean the hospice will have purpose-designed buildings in both Alnwick and in Berwick at Hazel Marsden House.

HospiceCare CEO Paul Jones-King said: “I’m incredibly excited about the opening of north Northumberland’s first Wellbeing Centres, which will complement our existing Hospice at Home clinical services and specialist bereavement support.

“It’s been a rewarding project knowing that we are developing our clinical services to enable local people, their families and carers, to access these vital support services locally instead of making a 70-mile round trip to access specialist services at the most difficult time of their lives.”

The Wellbeing Centres will offer a wide range of clinical services and activities. The facilities will be supported by the clinical services team at HospiceCare, with all patients being assessed by a practitioners who will prepare a personalised, holistic care plan to be delivered from the Wellbeing Centre, in the community or within their own homes, to meet individual needs.

There will be health-related activity-based workshops, one-to-one and group sessions available, which will respect the wishes of service users that some wish to be private and retain anonymity, and others who would like to be involved in social and group activities.

Personalised care plans will offer psychological, physical and social support as well as financial advice, delivered by nurses, trained practitioners, counsellors, physiotherapists and other health professionals.

The Wellbeing Centre will offer support to those with life-limiting conditions as well as their carers, families and friends. It will also be open to the public.

HospiceCare wants it to be a happy place to spend time, with its aim to help improve quality of life for all who visit.

Service users may attend a drop-in session, a specialist talk, a training course or an arts and crafts activity group – or just call in for coffee in the new café.

The building is being transformed into the new centre with the help of KB Surveying of Amble.

Next year will be the 25th anniversary of HospiceCare.

Over the years, its clinical services have grown and developed from small borrowed premises in Shilbottle, delivering day care, to the range of services it offers today: Hospice at Home; bereavement support; drop-ins; advanced dementia care training programmes; and the appointment of the first Admiral Nurse for north Northumberland.

Both the Alnwick and Berwick and Wellbeing Centres will be offering events during Dying Matters week, which starts on May 13.

HospiceCare was founded in 1995 and is the most northerly hospice in England.

Its annual running costs are around £700,000 and, with £40,000 received from the NHS, the rest is raised from donations, fund-raising and legacies.

For more information about HospiceCare North Northumberland, visit www.hospicecare-nn.org.uk