Grief, bereavement & befriending

Grief & bereavement

Each of us has experienced some level of loss or bereavement in our lives. For some, through the awful loss of someone close to them, for others, changes in our lives that are often out of our control can lead to a feeling of loss or bereavement. We each respond differently and go through stages as we process this change and loss and it can be hard to know how we will react until we find ourselves in such a situation.

Having talked to a number of project and church leaders, one of the themes that has come up time and time again is around the subject of grief and bereavement. Although there is a lot of support out there at a national level, and locally in some areas, people are often unsure what help is available and where.

One of the aims of TNT is to support and encourage churches as they engage with their communities and so we want to be able to help individuals to feel better equipped in this area. Our hope is that at the point of need, individuals in churches across the county will be able to signpost and support those they know who have experienced profound loss.

We are working hard on an interactive workshop for churches and projects to help them consider what grief is, how to best support someone and where to signpost in Notts. It will include recorded interviews with people who have themselves been bereaved and will give plenty of time to explore what our response as individuals and churches practically could be. Watch this space for more info coming out soon! To find out more and register your interest please contact Julia Terry.

Linking Lives befriending

Over half of all people aged 75 and over live alone in our country, and 10% of the general population aged over 65 in the UK are lonely all or most of the time.

We are proud to be part of a national network of projects through Linking Lives UK.

Linking Lives UK exists to reduce social isolation and loneliness, with a particular focus on older people. This is achieved by working in partnership with churches and Christian organisations to set up befriending projects.

Here at Transforming Notts Together, we aim to facilitate churches and community groups to set up local befriending projects in order to combat loneliness across our county. The current coronavirus crisis has made it difficult to do this through home visiting so we offer support to establish telephone befriending through the ‘Two’s Company’ model.

Two’s Company can be set up quickly, easily and safely. Each project requires a coordinator, a freephone telephone number and volunteers. Training is provided for coordinators via a video conference call and then spread out to volunteers locally.

If you are interested in setting up a Two’s Company befriending service from your organisation, please contact Paul Street for more information.

We are really excited about this work and are keen to hear from anyone who is interested in finding out more, letting us know what they are already doing in this area or who would like to partner with us- please do get in touch!