Council Bereavement Services donate over £6,000 to support Barnsley Hospice care

A donation made from Barnsley Council’s Bereavement Services has been used to fund counselling services at Barnsley Hospice.

The hospice’s bereavement support service provides professional support and a safe, confidential environment for people to talk about their bereavement after losing someone close to them.

Both children aged between 5 and 18 and adults can access the bereavement support services, which is available for the family and friends of people who have died from a life-limiting illness and had specialist palliative care needs.

A donation of over £6,000 has been gifted to the service by the council’s Bereavement Services through the ICCM Recycling of Metals scheme to support bereaved families in Barnsley.

The scheme sees metals recovered through cremation recycled with the consent of the bereaved family so they can help make a difference in the local area.

Councillor James Higginbottom, Cabinet Spokesperson for Environment and Highways, said:

“We are delighted to have been able to contribute towards the bereavement support service at Barnsley Hospice and help provide a vital service for families in need in Barnsley.

“The ICCM Recycling of Metals scheme allows bereaved families to know that their actions are making a difference in the local community, and we are proud to be able to contribute to such a worthy cause through this scheme.

“We look forward to continuing to work alongside Barnsley Hospice to support residents who have lost a loved one.”

Janice Blackburn, Lead Counsellor at Barnsley Hospice, said:

“We are so grateful that the ICCM Recycling of Metals scheme chose to donate and support our bereavement service.  

“We rely heavily on the generosity of our local community and this donation will have a huge impact on the pre and post bereavement work that we provide. Between April 2023 and March 2024, 276 people used our counselling services, with a total of 1116 counselling interactions by our team.

“This donation will enable us to keep moving forward in achieving our goal of maintaining a high-quality counselling and bereavement service for the hospice and the wider community of Barnsley.”

You can find out more about our counselling and bereavement services here.