News article
Therapy sausage dog draws the spotlight to our bereavement services
Published: 03 July 2024
- Featured
- Community
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York St John Communities Centre is a well-established provider of bereavement support to those in York and beyond. The Centre rapidly expanded its services to meet escalating need during the Covid-19 pandemic and remains a hub of globally significant bereavement research.
People who are bereaved or experiencing grief can access a range of support services, such as specialist counselling and free online support groups.
The Centre also provides Bereavement Cafés which are informative and supportive yet informal events for those who are grieving themselves or who wish to support others. The cafés are held on the second Wednesday of alternate months, with counsellors and other helpers on hand to listen to people's stories.
Now, the counsellors running the cafés have an unlikely new ally drawing attention to their events – a three year old miniature dachshund called Nola.
Nola is an official Pets as Therapy dog, owned by Communities Centre Manager Nikki Jephson who brings her along whenever possible. Nola helps attendees to settle into the sessions and provides comfort and cuddles as needed. She is also something of a social media star, even attracting the attention of the BBC.
The media coverage has now caught the eye of Co-op Funeralcare in York who reached out to offer their support. Last week the team visited the Communities Centre to hand over a very generous donation of £330 to go towards the next Bereavement Cafés.
Image shows (l-r) Nikki Jephson (YSJ Communities Centre Manager), Rachel Mallon (Co-op Funeralcare), Dr John Wilson (Director of Bereavement Services), Professor Lynne Gabriel (Director YSJ Communities Centre), Chantelle Byford (Co-op Funeralcare)
Dr John Wilson, Director of Bereavement Services at York St John Communities Centre, said: “We are delighted to receive this generous donation, which will enable us to reach out to more people in the supportive atmosphere of our bereavement cafés.
“We warmly welcome anyone experiencing grief themselves or who wishes to support others. It can be hard to seek support and talk about grief, but loss isn’t something that you need to deal with alone.”Chantelle Byford, Funeral Service Manager at Co-op Funeralcare in York said: “Here at Co-op Funeralcare we love to help in our local community, when I heard about this bereavement café I wanted to support them in any way we could. It was the perfect opportunity to help and support a group that is close to our hearts.
“We will be recommending this bereavement café to our clients and hope that the donation helps."
Sessions will be held on Wednesdays from 1.00pm to 3.00pm on the following dates:
- 10 July 2024
- 11 September 2024
- 13 November 2024
- 8 January 2025
Find out more about York St John Communities Centre's bereavement services
Contact us
Communications team
York St John University, Lord Mayors Walk, York, YO31 7EX
01904 876 466
To contact us out of hours, phone 07812 365 499