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Most people are aware that hospices provide expert end-of-life care. However, people don’t always realise that hospice care can start months or even years before the patient’s death. St John’s Hospice offers everything from specialist nursing care to physiotherapy, respite care, complementary therapies and bereavement counselling.

While St John’s does have an inpatient unit, much of the charity’s work is carried out in the patient’s own home or at its wellbeing centre.

Cristina Monk is the Senior Philanthropy and Major Gifts Executive at St John’s. She says, “We want our patients to have as much choice as possible about how their care is provided to them. As they near the end of their lives, some people want to be an inpatient at the hospice, but a lot of people want to stay where they feel the most comfortable, with their family close by.”

Hospice@Home

St John’s can support people at home in the final days of their life. While they can’t provide pain relief, healthcare assistants can monitor devices that do, such as syringe drivers, and help patients to take their medication on time. They can also take care of washing and other personal needs, and perform other tasks to ensure that the person is as comfortable as possible.

As the brother of one patient shares, “From the moment our healthcare assistant, Hamid, arrived, to the moment he left, he was 100% present and concerned about my brother’s comfort. In addition to caring for my brother, Hamid concerned himself with caring for me and for my sister, reassuring and comforting us. There was one particular day when I was feeling very alone, exhausted and anxious after a sleepless night. I saw Hamid approaching at 8am, and I felt the burden slip off my shoulders.”

There’s also an added benefit to the service. Cristina explains, “We can provide 24-hour care to all our inpatients, but we only have 17 beds here. Being able to expand into the community means we can reach a lot more people a lot more quickly, especially when they need care the most. We don’t have to wait for a bed to open up.”

While the Hospice@Home service isn’t available everywhere in London, St John’s has extended it into Hammersmith & Fulham this year, with the help of funding from the NHS and local grants, including £4,000 from Hammersmith United Charities. Cristina says, “We’ve been very lucky to have a lot of support coming in from Hammersmith & Fulham, and a big part of that is due to HUC and DEBK and other smaller trusts in the area. There’s a strong network of community organisations here.”

Fundraising for St John’s Hospice

As hospices provide such a vital service, many people assume that they’re funded through the government. In actual fact, the vast majority of their income comes from donations and grants. Costs have risen significantly in recent years and many hospices are now struggling. In England alone, hospices ended the last financial year with a deficit of more than £70 million and 33 hospices were forced to make significant cuts to their services.

As Claire Lubbock, Senior Fundraising Manager at St John’s, says, “One in three people in the UK who have a life-limiting condition don’t receive the level of palliative care that they should. Unfortunately, without hospices, people end up passing away in hospital or a care home.”

There are many ways that you can support St John’s Hospice, from payroll giving to leaving a gift in your will or taking part in one of the charity’s many fundraising appeals.

Christmas fundraising

Donating to St John’s Hospice

Christmas is traditionally a time for recognising and celebrating those we love, whether they’re still with us or have passed away.

In the first week of December, all donations made to St John’s Hospice will be match-funded, meaning that every £10 you donate will be worth £20 to the charity.

Santa in the City

On 10^th December, hundreds of people dressed as Father Christmas will run or walk through the heart of London to raise money for charity. As Claire says, “It’s a really fun, welcoming 5k walk that starts at St Paul’s and it helps us to raise vital funds, which make a real difference at a special time of year.”

Registering costs £20 and you’ll receive:

• A free five-piece Santa suit to wear on the day
• A Santa in the City medal
• Support with your fundraising and training.

Find out more at www.stjohnshospice.org.uk/events/santa-in-the-city

Light Up a Life

A chance to come together, remember and reflect, Light Up a Life is a multi-faith service at St John’s Wood Church. This year, it’s being held on Tuesday 8th December from 6pm and will include live music, poetry and readings. After the service, you can head to Lord’s Cricket Ground for drinks and canapés.

It costs just £12 to register for Light Up a Life.

In Loving Memory Garden

From 30th November to 6th December, St John’s gardens will be lit by hundreds of star decorations. For £25, you can dedicate a star in memory of a loved one and write a message on your dedication plaque. In January, you’re welcome to collect your star and take it home as a keepsake.  Claire says, “People are welcome to walk through the garden for a moment of remembrance to start the festive season.”

‍Dedicate a star here.

Volunteer

St John’s is looking for volunteers to support with Light Up a Life and the In Loving Memory Garden. If you can help, please email volunteers@hje.org.uk

Get support

If you or a loved one has a life-limiting illness and lives in North, West or Central London, St John’s may be able to offer support. A GP, hospital doctor, nurse specialist, community nurse or other health & social care professional can make the referral. Find out more at www.stjohnshospice.org.uk/referrals

Watching a play can transport you to a different time and place. For a few hours, you can immerse yourself fully in a creative experience, free from distractions and day-to-day concerns. What’s more, as Zosha Nash says, “It’s not only about activating people’s imagination and experiencing the magic of creativity; it’s also about shared experience, which is becoming more and more rare in the 21st century.

“It’s about seeing stories from other people, other cultures that you may not ordinarily encounter, and sitting with people from all different walks of life to have that unique experience for one night only.”

Zosha is Director of Development at the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre, which has played a crucial role in West London for more than 130 years. The Lyric aims to be a platform for diverse talent. Zosha explains, “The stories on our stage reflect the community that we sit at the heart of. It’s really important that people can recognise themselves on the stage and recognise their stories.”

Making arts & culture affordable

While 73% of Londoners would like to go to the theatre, many simply cannot afford to. This is hardly surprising given that a single theatre ticket can cost over £100 at many London venues.

The Lyric takes a different approach. Its shows often receive critical acclaim, but tickets start at just £10. What’s more, the theatre offers free tickets to community groups through its Community Ticket Bank, which is part-funded by Hammersmith United Charities.

Zosha explains, “We want the theatre to be accessible to everyone, particularly those in our local community. For many people, it will be the very first time they’ve been to the theatre.

“The money from Hammersmith United Charities has gone towards funding free tickets for our recent show, Fences, and for our annual pantomime, which is brilliant for groups that serve young people or families. It’s also paid for theatre tickets for START and SPRINGBOARD participants [see below].”

Young Lyric

The Lyric offers free and low-cost theatre classes for young people, and also has three flagship inclusion schemes – START, SPRINGBOARD and REWIND.

Zosha says, “REWIND is for secondary school-age children who are at risk of leaving education. We work with these young people on being able to express themselves, tell their stories and re-engage with the educational environment. There are proven benefits to getting involved with arts & culture from a young age. Being confident and able to speak in public, for example, are soft skills that can have a knock-on effect in all different areas of your life, including employability and social mobility.”

START also aims to help young people develop soft skills that will benefit them throughout life. The six-week programme is for young people aged 16 to 25 who are currently not in education, employment or training. Zosha says, “We use theatre skills to improve confidence and enable the young person to look an interviewer in the eye, give a clear response and so on. It’s also about opening the door to the creative industries. If someone has never been into a theatre before, they usually wouldn’t have considered all the jobs that go on behind the scenes.”

The Lyric’s talent development programme, SPRINGBOARD, is helping to make theatre more accessible for young people from under-represented backgrounds. Unlike drama school, it’s free to attend and participants receive a bursary to help with living costs. Zosha says, “They have in-depth actor training, including sessions with every single one of our main stage directors. They learn all of the skills that you need to be a successful performer, such as vocal technique. They’re also coached in the practicalities of working as a self-employed actor.  Alumni have been on the West End stage, in TV commercials, in Netflix series and so on.”

Alongside its flagship programmes, The Lyric runs many other activities aimed at young people. A free Young Lyric membership, for example, offers £5 theatre tickets, member-only events and other benefits for young people up to the age of 25 who live in West London.

For the last two years, The Lyric has toured a play called Cross the Line, in partnership with H&F Council’s Gangs, Violence and Exploitation Unit, which tells the story of a 12-year-old boy who’s pulled into drug running. The show helps children to recognise the signs of grooming and County Lines exploitation before they’re most at risk. It’s been performed in every primary school in Hammersmith & Fulham and was awarded an Excellence in Arts Education award at the UK Theatre Awards.

Whether they’re enjoying a show, learning new skills or discovering a new career path, thousands of people across Hammersmith benefit from the Lyric every year. Who knows how far the experience could take them?

Get involved

If you’re interested in taking part in Young Lyric, you can find out more on the theatre’s website.

The Community Ticket Bank opens a few times each year. Keep an eye on the theatre’s Instagram page and the Ticket Bank webpage for more details.

Christmas is considered a time of togetherness, where we join friends and family to eat mince pies, play games, pull a cracker and celebrate. However, around 15% of people over 65 spend Christmas completely alone.

Here in Hammersmith, 500 residents who would otherwise be on their own at Christmas can instead join in with H&F’s Big Christmas Day Lunch. As well as roast turkey and all the trimmings, guests can enjoy dancing, live music and gifts. There’s no cost, and free transport to and from the lunch can also be arranged.

The event is organised by Hammersmith & Fulham Council in partnership with H&F Giving, and will be held at Novotel London West.

Book a place at the lunch

If you or someone you know wants to join the lunch, more details are available here. To attend, you need to be a resident of Hammersmith & Fulham and either be aged 60+ or referred by one of H&F’s services or charities. The closing date is Monday 7 December.

Support the Big Christmas Day Lunch

• The Big Christmas Day Lunch relies on donations from residents and local organisations. To ensure that people don’t have to spend Christmas alone, you can make a donation through H&F Giving here.
• If you work for an organisation that can’t donate, could they provide gifts for some of the goody bags instead? If so, please ask them to contact H&F Giving at team@hfgiving.or.uk
• Do you have a few hours spare to support The Big Christmas Day Lunch? Whether you want to take part on the day or help with preparations such as filling goody bags and writing cards, please sign up to volunteer here.

Young people face many challenges when leaving care, from financial instability to loneliness and mental health challenges. According to a Government study, many feel alone or isolated and don’t know where to turn.

Jenny Chigwende works in mental health so she is all too aware of the impact that childhood traumas and the care system can have on young people. Jenny is also Chair of W12Together – a resident-led charity for the people of Wormholt and White City.

In a bid to better support the care leavers in their community, W12Together is launching a new service, Tree for Life, which will offer narrative therapy for young care leavers who have experienced trauma.

Jenny says, “It’s a chance for them to tell their story, in a non-stigmatising, non-traumatising way, and to have the rest of the group hear their story. They’ll explore their strengths, values, relationships, skills, hopes and sources of resilience by drawing a tree to represent different parts of themselves. The roots are where you come from – the foundational things that helped to make you who you are. The ground is where you are now. The trunk is your skills and talents; the branches are your hopes and dreams; the leaves are the people who are important to you; and the fruits are the gifts that you’ve been given by those people, like patience.”

The new service is due to launch in January and is being funded with a grant from Hammersmith United Charities.

Christmas dinner for young people who have experienced care

The Tree of Life project is building on an existing W12Together service – its annual Christmas dinner for care leavers. Jenny shares, “The White City dinner launched two years ago through Gold from the Stone – a charity set up by the poet Lemn Sissay to make sure that care leavers have a space to go on Christmas Day, where they can have dinner and feel part of the community. If you live in W12 and you are a care-experienced young person, there will always be a place at our table.”

Each young person who attends will receive a Christmas hamper, along with a quilt from Quilts for Care Leavers. Jenny explains, “The idea is that it’s a hug in a quilt. Every care leaver at the dinner can decide whether they want a quilt, and if they do, they can choose the colour and style.

“One young person who came to our first dinner was about to go into her first flat on her own. She was terrified and talked a lot about that at the dinner. In January, she sent us a photo of her on a sofa wrapped in the quilt. She said, ‘I spent my first night in the flat. I was really anxious, so I reached for my quilt and I felt all of you guys around me.’”

Get involved with W12Together

As well as its support for care leavers, W12Together is working to improve life for the residents of Wormholt and White City in many other ways. You can get involved by:

• Joining a focus group to help shape the future of local healthcare
• Volunteering at local events, such as the charity’s annual festival
• Helping the charity with admin or other tasks
• Joining the Board of trustees
• Offering support in other ways, such as wrapping gifts for the care-leavers’ Christmas dinner

Find out more on W12Together’s website