York St John Communities Centre
Bereavement services
Whether it’s our drop in cafes, groups, a listening ear or bereavement counselling, our service will support you.
Everyone grieves in their own way, and the type of support and how much support you might need will differ to someone else.
When thinking about one to one support, not many people need counselling, and one in two people manage well with the support of friends and family.
Others may just need a little reassurance from support groups, drop-in bereavements cafes or a few-one to-one sessions with an experienced listener. Continue reading to find out more on what we offer.
Bereavement Support Group
A free 20 week online support group for people who are bereaved or experiencing grief.
In the group you will have the opportunity to talk about your feelings and to others who have gone through a similar experience and can relate to your experiences. It's a space for everyone to listen and mutually support each other. It won't take away the pain, but it can help to share it with people who want to listen.
Our weekly group will be held every week on Tuesday, from 4.30pm to 6.00pm, online on Zoom.
If you would like to come to one of our drop-in sessions or become a weekly member, please fill out a referral form.
Download our information leaflet:
How to join
If you, or someone you know, would like to join our Bereavement Support Group or find out more information, please email ysjcc@yorksj.ac.uk and one of our team will get back to you.
Bereavement Café
Starting on Wednesday 13 March, at 1.00pm, we will be running a Café for bereaved people to help them understand what they are going through. When you are bereaved of someone you loved, the emotions you feel can be confusing. Bereavement counsellors and other helpers will be there to listen to people’s stories. Each person’s grief is unique, but we will teach a little about the grief journey most people go through, and you may recognise yourself in what we say.
We also warmly welcome anyone interested in helping family and friends with their grief, as well as anyone interested in learning more about bereavement support. The café will then continue on the second Wednesday in alternate months. You can join us at any point and come for 6 sessions.
The group may not be helpful if your grief is recent, and you know you would be very distressed in public. However, grief can take any of us by surprise. If you do get distressed, don’t worry. One of us will take you to a quiet space to talk.
We've also teamed up with Pets as Therapy, and Nikki our Centre Manager will be bringing along Nola to some of the drop-in sessions! Nola loves a cuddle and meeting with new people, so will be sure to give you a warm welcome if you join one of the sessions and want to say hello to her.
Bereavement Café sessions will be held on Wednesday's from 1.00 to 3.00pm on the following dates:
- 13 March 2024
- 8 May 2024
- 10 July 2024
- 11 September 2024
- 13 November 2024
- 8 January 2025
Supporting York St John Communities Centre
Your donation makes a great difference!
Your gift helps cover the cost of providing free services such as our community language school, bereavement group and café's, student suicide support group 'Laurens Ladies' and drop-ins such as the weekly breastfeeding group.
As our income grows, so too does our staff team of receptionists, administrators, co-ordinators, assessors, supervisors, counsellors, coaches, and group facilitators, and your support is needed to ensure they are actively involved in service delivery and are remunerated for their work. Anything that you are able to donate can help support the work we do and the services that we offer to our community.
