Group Bereavement Training for Professionals

It was a pleasure to work with Zoe from the National Bereavement Service, who delivered bespoke bereavement training for our colleagues. Zoe invested time in understanding the specific challenges our teams encounter, covering essential topics such as emotional and stress responses to grief, active listening and communication techniques, appropriate language to use (and avoid), and important cross-cultural considerations. She delivered the training with great care, empathy, and sensitivity, creating a safe and supportive environment for everyone involved.

We recently booked a session with the National Bereavement Service, which was hugely beneficial to our team. We talk to bereaved people every day, and the training session has left us feeling more confident about having these conversations and talking about death. The sections on language to use was particularly useful, and there was plenty of opportunity for discussion within the training session. Our trainer, Zoe, created a safe environment where everyone felt comfortable sharing their ideas and experiences. We would highly recommend the bereavement training conducted by the National Bereavement Service. 

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.

“The training we received from Zoe at the National Bereavement Service was absolutely fantastic. From putting together a very thorough proposal that clearly met the needs of the team identified in advance to delivering an expertly-handled, interactive session, we couldn’t have asked for a better approach to a really sensitive topic. We would totally recommend any organisation and team taking part in training from the NBS to enhance the support provided for employees and line managers.”

 

“We are hugely grateful to Zoe for putting a lot of effort into working with us to create a tailored session about grief and loss that met the needs of our team. Zoe’s expertise around bereavement shone through and she immediately put the team at ease, creating a safe environment for us to share and learn. We all took a great deal from the session and would recommend NBS grief training without hesitation!”

“Our session with Zoe was really insightful and useful, and we came away feeling more confident and comfortable in liaising with and supporting people going through a bereavement. Zoe was incredibly respectful to all those in the room who have been impacted by death, and was very sensitive to the nature of our work. We were reminded throughout the session about the importance of supporting ourselves, as well as others, which was greatly appreciated. Thank you, Zoe.”

 

 

“The training was exactly what we we’re looking for as an organisation, it was informative and engaging. I think everyone should be educated in the bereavement space, it was such a worthwhile session that has opened my eyes to a
whole new way of thinking about death and the grieving process. Zoe was brilliant and I feel confident that the knowledge I have learnt from the session will benefit a lot of our colleagues, especially working in the healthcare sector, starting these kind of open discussions will be invaluable to us.”

“Back in January we had the pleasure of receiving some training from Zoe at NBS. Straight away she made us all feel comfortable and at ease. The session was excellent, as it was a long session everyone was quite worried about this but the day flew by and we were kept engaged throughout the entire day. One of our favourite parts was bringing back what we do day to day in our roles, to our personal lives and how bereavement affects us. We know now that all of our processes and fit for purpose and that was the main aim of the day for us! Thank you so much and we look forward to working with you again in 2024.”

We were very fortunate to have Zoe facilitate an awareness session with our Women’s Health Network this morning about the National Bereavement Service. Prior to this I had not known about this amazing service. Zoe is extremely knowledgeable about what I consider to be a really difficult subject and shared a lot of useful information with the group, including getting us to think about how we feel talking about death and suicide. It had never really occurred to me why so many of us are uncomfortable talking about it and actually how useful it is if we do. There are so many elements to think about when we are faced with the death of someone close to us and how much support is actually available. I would highly recommend utilising the NBS and using their wealth of resources to both educate ourselves on how to deal with bereavement, and also to learn how to support others”

“We engaged NBS as some staff were finding it difficult to engage with clients and colleagues who were experiencing bereavement. Anne Wadey made the long journey down to Bristol to deliver a seminar to our staff. The staff found it both interesting and useful, those who could not attend will attend a follow up zoom meeting. We cannot recommend the service enough.”

“The National Bereavement Service provided two training sessions to our Social Prescribing Team. We speak with bereaved people every week and we all felt that we needed more education around how best to support their needs.
Overall, we all found that the training made us think about how we might support patients more appropriately going forward and we gained so much knowledge and insight. We would highly recommend the training to other organisations, especially as many patients have let us know that after a death, they have found some institutions (such as banks, insurance companies, etc.) have been particularly unhelpful and obstructive to those coping with bereavement. We would suggest that this type of training should be mandatory in these situations.”

“This was exactly the sort of information we were looking for when we contacted you. The comments section was going off the hook with people stating that they’d found the session helpful and reassuring, even someone saying it had lessened their anxiety around this topic. The training was brilliant, I feel far more educated and up-to-speed in the bereavement space and I think a lot of our colleagues will benefit hugely from this.”

“The team at Exizent are so grateful for the time Anne and Lisa took to talk to us about their experience supporting families, and how they carefully tailored the talk for us. It was so well received and paved the way for a lot of interesting
discussions, particularly on the language we should use when talking about loss. Thank you both, it was very thought-provoking.”

“I was delighted with the content and feedback, with over 500 advisers attending the webinar and providing overwhelmingly positive feedback, and many requesting further information. The comments post the event suggested that this difficult but extremely important subject was something they really welcomed expert guidance on.”

“The training provided by the National Bereavement Service was tailored to the work we do with our clients. We appreciated the call before the training to understand how we work and what we were looking for. The training itself was delivered well and allowed ample time for questions. The information provided was affirming in terms of our current
processes with some food for thought on how we can make improvements. We would recommend the training to corporate organisations who deal directly with bereaved individuals.”

“NBS facilitated a thought-provoking session on bereavement using their expertise to provide employees with an opportunity to better understand and prepare for the bereavement process, encouraging more open discussions on this topic. NBS wove two Sky personal story speakers into their interactive session to demonstrate to Sky employees how grief can affect people differently followed by Q&A.”

“The National Bereavement Service tailored training for our vulnerable client champions along with a webinar for all
colleagues. The sessions focused on conversations with bereaved clients, providing valuable insights, case studies and practical guidance on handling the initial call. The training was excellent, equipping staff with the knowledge needed not only to support our clients and executors but also their family and friends.”

“Our Centre recently participated in a bereavement training session facilitated by the National Bereavement Service. We found it an empowering, positive, and interesting discussion about what can be a difficult yet integral part of our work. The trainer (Zoe) supported discussions, and taught us powerful emotional and practical means to support our service users moving forward. The training was a safe space, with us all feeling able to open up
without feeling ashamed. I know that everyone who participated in this training would recommend it – in fact, I already have! I also know that we will all continue to reflect, learn, and grow from the session as well as engage with the National Bereavement Service as a trusted source of emotional and practical support.”

“The training has been very well received and has created a great deal of discussion about this really important subject.
As you know, the Powys Teaching Health Board is at the start of it’s 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. Thank you once again for the sessions and I hope to collaborate with you again in the future.”