Bereavement Training Testimonials and Case Studies

The Financial Conduct Authority has identified bereavement as a potential source of financial vulnerability and the bank approached National Bereavement Service (NBS) to provide relevant training in this area.

Goals:

• To enable bank staff to understand the context in which bereaved clients or the relatives of clients who have died make contact with the bank
• To help staff understand why this group may be financially vulnerable
• To enhance their skills in appropriate communication with bereaved people

Training Delivered: 2 remote online sessions. 1st delivered to 12 Vulnerable Client Champions and 2nd to over 100 staff.

Testimonial: “The training was excellent, equipping staff with the knowledge needed not only to support our clients and executors but also their family and friends.” – Dianne Bevan – Business Support Manager

How will the company use the training moving forward?

Improving customer experience by:

• Enhanced communication with bank staff who will be appropriately empathetic and understanding of their needs, within the financial business-client context.
• Enabling staff to identify clients who may be vulnerable and who can be offered appropriate assistance.
• To enable staff to signpost clients to additional sources of support when appropriate.

Improve staff experience by:

• Increased morale through more satisfying conversations helping address clients feelings and needs around the subject.
• To be able to signpost clients to additional sources of support when such needs are identified.
• Training that meets current identified regulatory needs.

It has been identified that some team members lack the confidence and skills to communicate directly with clients in these difficult life circumstances, so transactions become unnecessarily protracted using correspondence rather than phone calls. This adds administrative burden to the client and may delay the release of much needed funds. The 51 strong team comprises people of a wide variety of ages and life experiences.

Goals:

• Training to be provided to enable the Special Care Team to have the confidence to make and receive phone calls with bereaved clients concerning their financial products.

Training Delivered: 2 half day on site sessions at Edinburgh HQ. Delivered to 24 employees.

Testimonial:

“Aegon contacted the National Bereavement Service to enquire about their specialist bereavement training. We were interested to learn how it could supplement our existing bereavement and vulnerable customer training.

The team at National Bereavement Service were proactive, engaging and clearly proud of the work they do to support organisations and the public.

Anne Wadey and her colleague Zoe delivered a workshop for us on ‘communicating with bereaved people’ in September. The workshop was well designed and well delivered, but what made it extra special was Anne’s unique and impressive storytelling. This is testament to Anne’s long career spent working with bereaved people. Anne and Zoe were professional and personable, making them a joy to work with.

The training was informative and enjoyable and I’m confident it will add great value to our organisation and workforce. Thanks again to the National Bereavement Service team.” – Lisa Barwood – Aegon Learning and Development Consultant

How will the company use the training moving forward?

Improving customer experience by:

• Simplifying the process of accessing their assets.
• Enabling current ‘snail mail’ communications to be converted into speedier telephone conversations.
• Enhancing the quality of telephone conversations between the Special Care Team and Aegon customers, with the empathy appropriate to a business-client transaction.
• Confidently signposting customers to additional sources of support when appropriate.

Improve Special Care Team experience by:

• Increased efficiency in processing bereaved clients’ claims, leading to improved KPIs.
• Signposting clients to additional sources of support when such needs are identified.
• Increased morale through satisfying conversations with clients aligning with Aegon’s mission statement.
• Training that meets current needs.
• Enhanced skills and confidence leading to greater staff retention and happier customers who may refer.

The Powys Teaching Health Board (PTHB) is the local health board of NHS Wales for Powys county. They are responsible for developing and carrying out integrated healthcare strategies including the training and teaching of staff. As part of their ongoing strategy to improve commissioned services, PTHB identified a need to build the confidence of healthcare staff to support bereaved people, both emotionally and practically. The NBS was approached to help develop training that supported the process of meeting the standards of bereavement care and use of language and literature across all PHTB’s commissioned services, working towards the Welsh Government’s vision and framework.

Goals:

• To build confidence and equip both teams with the tools to:
  • Have better conversations; building confidence for the teams in how they initiate difficult conversations and support bereaved people experiencing the emotions of grief whilst taking care of themselves (anticipatory and those who are bereaved)
  • Gain an understanding of the administrative steps that need to be taken when someone has died
  • Support the process of meeting the standards of bereavement care and use of language and literature across all PHTB’s commissioned services.

Training Delivered: 3 x 4-hour face to face sessions to 20 attendees per session.

Testimonial:

“The training has been very well received and has created a great deal of discussion about this really important subject.

PTHB is at the start of its journey to set up a bereavement service and the National Bereavement Service training has provided us with a strong foundation on which to build, with our newly in post Bereavement Clinical Lead. I hope that you also enjoyed spending time with our staff.”

– Heidi Sinclair – Head of Quality and Safety

How will the company use the training moving forward?

Improving client experience by: 

• Interacting with staff who have a better grasp of how to have good conversations with bereaved people
• Being better supported by the staff with an improved understanding of the practical and emotional issues they face during bereavement
• Being signposted to NBS and PHTB’s social services where needed for additional support and advice on matters where the Healthcare and Management do not have the appropriate knowledge and training
• Continuing care of patients and families within the community.

Improve Powys Healthcare Team experience by:

• Enhancing the quality of conversations between staff and the bereaved family with the empathy, compassion, and care appropriate to this relationship
• Improving overall morale through staff knowing they are having empathetic conversations, aligned with the PHTBs strategy which aims to support people to Start Well, Live Well, Age Well.
• Increasing awareness of strategies and tools to use when handling difficult conversations and interactions with those experiencing anticipatory grief and those who are bereaved
• Improving engagement amongst staff members through supportive relationships with managers
• Developing more confident managers who have the knowledge and resources to meet the needs of bereaved team members
• Confidently signposting clients to additional sources of support should such needs be identified, including to the NBS *
• Being signposted to NBS where needed for additional support and advice on matters where the team do not have the appropriate knowledge and training
• Providing training that meets current needs as identified by the PHTB.