1. Louise Palmer Community Involvement Manager
DYING MATTERS
Louise Palmer
Community Involvement Manager

2. End of Life Care Strategy, Department of Health, 2008
“Many consider death to be the last great taboo in our society and ….most of us find it hard to engage in advance with the way in which we would like to be cared for at the end of life.”
End of Life Care Strategy, Department of Health, 2008
This includes being able to talk about dying, death and bereavement

3. Our initial mission
“Support changing knowledge, attitudes and behaviours towards death, dying and bereavement, and through this to make ‘living and dying well’ the norm.”

4. How do we help?
#BigConversation

5. Communications
#BigConversation

6. Website & social media – growing every year
During 2015, the Dying Matters website continued its steady trajectory. The website received 1,458,871 page views (compared with 977,792 in 2014 – an increase of 49%) and 554,514 unique visitors (compared with 352,712 in 2014 – an increase of 57%)
We have also enjoyed increasing reach through social media. At the end of 2014, we had just over 22,000 followers on Twitter. At the end of 2015, we had just over 33,000. Facebook likes – an increase from 4,200 in January 2015 to 6,179 by December 2015

7. Bereavement
#BigConversation

8. Dying Matters Awareness Week – The Big Conversation 9th – 15th May 2016
New materials to encourage people to talk and take action
Plans to commission research into public attitudes and behaviour
Exciting initiatives already planned by members
We’re finalising the Dying Matters Annual Debate on the 9th May which the GMC are kindly supporting – more information to follow
Watch this space for other announcements which will be made in due course
New Partnerships
#BigConversation

9. Over 32,000 members including
Financial services; funeral directors; faith groups; florists; funeral poverty
Lawyers; will-writers; financial & family advisors
Health & social care
Celebrants, doulas, spiritual midwifes
Campaigners: bereaved families

10. Leaflets
Information for older people or people who are ill who would like to start conversations
Information for people close to people who are dying about how to start conversation
How to talk to children
Bereavement
Practical list

11. Work with GPs: Confidence-building training; Find the 1%

12. Schools: lesson plan; art projects

13. Find Me Help

14. Over 100,000 people have watched our films

15. DVDs

16. Supporting arts events

17. Bereavement & employment campaigns

18. Talking about dying
“Lynda Bellingham has passed away, and today I am celebrating her death almost as much as her life...”
If that sounds callous I don’t mean it to; it’s just that, in three or so all-too-short weeks, she made dying look manageable. She took a ghastly inevitability and found a way to celebrate. She stood on the edge of a terrifying abyss and gave it two fingers. She met the Grim Reaper, and she decided to tickle him.

20. Supporting people’s choices
“The work of the Dying Matters Coalition should be encouraged, supported and sustained...
We also support public health approaches to end of life care”

22. Our calls Make a will Make financial plans
Plan for your future care & support
Record your funeral wishes
Consider organ & tissue donation
Share your wishes with you loved ones

23. What YOU can do
Five main things you can do to be ready for Dying Matters Awareness
Week and support our work:
Organise events and activities for the awareness week and let us know what are planning so we can promote and support - and crucially do feed back afterwards.
Order your Dying Matters awareness week resources now
Have the conversations to make end of life wishes known and encourage others to do the same
Act as ambassadors for Dying Matters – spread the word, tell us your story and encourage others to join and get involved
Tweet, blog and post about your events and about Awareness Week as much as possible – and don’t forget to include the hashtag #BigConversation
Share your ideas and let us know how we can support you
#BigConversation

24. For more information about either NCPC or Dying Matters visit Or call NCPC Dying Matters – FREEPHONE
#BigConversation