Social work and welfare

Palliative care social workers that work with you

We are a team of palliative care social workers and welfare officers who recognise the impact of living with a life-limiting illness on you and those close to you.

Our team understands life can change from the point of diagnosis. We acknowledge living with high levels of uncertainty and unpredictability can be both confusing and frightening. Our skilled team can work with you to assess your support needs and ensure the right care and support is accessed at the right time; helping you through periods of change and/or crisis.

Living with a life-limiting illness can impact environments, emotions, relationships, mental wellbeing and financial security; we are here to ensure you understand your needs, your rights and your entitlements. We work in partnership with you to ensure you are supported in life, in death and in early bereavement. We are led by you and work at your pace, ensuring you stay in control of your own life and make your own decisions, even where these basic human rights may feel threatened or even lost.

We offer the following to patients, their family, their friends and their informal carers:

• Information and advice in relation to non-medical aspects of your life; including welfare benefits, charity grants, housing, funerals and social and community based support.
• Comprehensive assessment of your unmet support needs.
• Guidance on how to navigate health, social care and benefit systems, including accessing services and funding.
• Individual support to enable you to explore, process and manage the impact of living with a life-limiting illness.
• Family or group support to facilitate open and often emotionally complex communication between you and those closest to you.
• Advocacy to ensure your voice is heard and your rights and entitlements are upheld.
• Referrals to other services within the hospice and to other agencies in the community.
• Planning for living, dying and bereavement.
• Support for children and young-people within their families, schools and wider networks

We also work with our colleagues at St Christopher’s and with those in other services, such as social services, GP’s and other agencies involved in your support network.

We are committed to safeguarding your wellbeing, rights and autonomy and will work with your consent and full participation.

Financial guidance

• Financial help when you are caring for someone
• Bereavement benefits if you are under pension age
• Bereavement benefits if you have children living with you
• Other bereavement benefits you may be entitled to