MARY Stevens Hospice staff have delivered a workshop to improve the awareness of palliative care available to the homeless and vulnerable community across Dudley borough.

Gemma Allen and Claire Towns from the hospice ran the one-off session for staff from West Midlands Police, Midland Heart and Dudley Council to discuss what could be done to ensure that access to palliative care is available to the homeless and vulnerable community.

They were also talking about the help they can give to support organisations in the area to feel more confident and knowledgeable when offering information on how to access that support.

Attendees were asked to book in advance and the session was over-subscribed, with 14 community figures attending on behalf of the relevant organisations and a waiting list of interested parties who were unable to attend due to venue capacity.

Gemma, diversity and inclusion project lead at Mary Stevens Hospice, said: “Mary Stevens Hospice's strategic vision is to provide more care for more people in our community including people from marginalised groups whose needs at end of life are often seldom-heard.

“By facilitating the education workshop, we are not only raising awareness of the services we provide but educating frontline staff working directly with those who are homeless and vulnerable in Dudley.”

Due to the demand of the workshop, hospice staff are exploring whether there is an opportunity to run it again at a later date for those who were not able to attend.