The Living Well programme

Practical, specialist and peer support to help people live well through cancer or other life-limiting illness

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Who can use this service? People living in Herts or Bucks with any life-limiting illness

When is this service available? Courses run one day a week 10:30 am till 2pm on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, or Thursdays

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Where is this service provided? At our Grove House day centre in St Albans, Hertfordshire

About the Living Well programme

Living Well provides a positive, active space for practical care and social support for patients coping with cancer or other life-limiting illness.

Patients attend Living Well for one day a week for 8 weeks. If you’re in remission, have no symptoms, or no longer need Living Well support, you may be discharged sooner, but can be re-referred if circumstances change.

All patients enrolled in Living Well are monitored and assessed by registered nurses who offer symptom management and emotional support. You’ll also get support from other patients and volunteers in a group setting, as well as the chance to take part in activities to boost wellbeing.

Taking part in the Living Well programme is a great way to get to know the friendly Grove House community – staff and patients – and familiarise yourself with all the resources available.  Patients who have completed the Living Well programme remain a part of the Grove House community and continue to be supported by our day services team however possible and appropriate.

Key features of the Living Well programme include:

  • get advice on managing your symptoms from registered nurses
  • discuss any worries or concerns one-to-one with specialist nurses
  • get signposted or referred to other services that can support you and your family
  • benefit from peer support and social interaction – to improve your confidence and lift your mood
  • access optional creative activities alongside visiting speakers and other group activities
  • access complementary therapies such as reflexology and reiki – to boost your physical and emotional wellbeing

Like all Rennie Grove Peace services, our Living Well Programme is completely free of charge. However, we will ask you for a small donation each time you attend a Living Well session to help towards the cost of food and drink.

We can deliver the services thanks to the generosity of the local community. In short, donations, charity shop income and fundraising events cover 91% of our running costs.

Any healthcare professional involved in your care, including your GP, can refer you.  Ask for a referral to the Living Well Programme at Rennie Grove Peace’s Grove House Day Services.  (if you make the request by email you may want to copy and paste the link into the email for ease of reference.)

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You can refer yourself by phoning 01727 731000 or by calling into one of our drop-in sessions at Grove House. When self referring, it is handy if you have your GP contact details to hand.  Before commencing care we will need to do an assessment to determine if the support we can provide is a good match for your needs.

If you live in Bucks and can’t easily get to Grove House, we can refer you to similar services closer to home. This wouldn’t prevent us from supporting you in other ways through our community-based services.

Healthcare professionals can refer Hertfordshire patients for Living Well by making a referral to Grove House Day Services.

For Buckinghamshire patients interested in Living Well, please enquire directly at Grove House on 01727 731000, as we may be able to recommend courses running nearer to the patient’s home.

At Rennie Grove Peace, our five service teams work collaboratively to help patients and their families live the best quality life they can.  You can learn more about the role each service plays to support adults facing life-limiting illness, and their families, here.