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In every community, people face the realities of illness, death, and grief — yet many feel unprepared or unsupported. Compassionate Gateshead is a growing movement to change that.
We’re bringing people together — individuals, families, schools, workplaces, health services, faith and community groups — to build a borough where compassion, confidence, and connection surround our experience of dying and bereavement.
Our vision
Making Gateshead a borough where no one faces dying, death, or grief alone. Where services, communities, and individuals are connected, confident, and compassionate.
Support people to be more confident to talk about death.
Strengthen connections between public, private and voluntary services.
Make it easier to access support within the community.
Our research
Between May and July 2025, more than 250 people across Gateshead shared their experiences of dying, death, providing care, and grief. We heard that:
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Families often feel lost and unsupported, especially outside working hours.
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Carers can feel invisible. Support often stops suddenly when their loved one dies.
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Bereavement services are limited or hard to access — especially for children and young people.
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Professionals are working hard but want more joined-up support, and more time for compassionate care.
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People want honest, open conversations about death — to replace silence and fear with understanding and connection.
Progress so far
Consulted with over
250 people
from a wide range of backgrounds and roles (professional and personal) about their experiences of dying, death, care and grief
Contributed our research data to the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment for Public Health
Increased the content on the OurGateshead website dying, death and grief page that has also increased in views by 350%
Facilitated a partnership between Emmanual Schools Foundation and Winston’s Wish to pilot their flagship
‘ask me’
manifesto
providing direct support to bereaved students and training for teachers
Recruited an experienced Project Manager to establish and lead the network.
Secured
£30,000
of grants to match fund the initial grant from Hospice UK via the ICB
Run two
death café’s
in partnership with Edberts House for their link workers and their clients to provide a facilitated space to talk
Provided training on child bereavement to Palliative Care nurses and other health professionals
Started planning for a
Festival of Compassion
in partnership with Gateshead Libraries
Julian Prior
Project Manager
Dr. Elizabeth Woods
Consultant in Palliative Medicine