This series of workshops has been co-created by GP Dr Jo Withers. I ran a pop-up death cafe with Jo at Berkhamsted last summer and have no hesitation in highly recommend her work. If you want to contact Jo direct, please do so through the Finity website.

Caring for Life, Preparing for Death: Finity Workshops Series

Finity is a voluntary organisation which was founded by two doctors to give members of their local community the opportunity to consider and explore end-of-life issues.

Having piloted a series of workshops for community members, Finity has produced a manual to guide people who want to run workshops about dying, death and loss within their own community. It offers a framework for the whole series, broken down into individual modules, so that anyone can confidently plan either a single workshop or a series of events.

The aim of the workshops is to give participants (lay members of the community) information, vocabulary and a chance to discuss end of life issues with encouragement to start planning for the end of life. Participants will then be better able to support those close to them, and in turn to plan for themselves, allowing the development of a more compassionate community.

The manual gives information on aims, topics, timings, and who to contact as expert speakers. Each module includes handouts for participants, which can be photocopied. Notes are also included as extended support for the facilitator along with an explanation brief to give to any invited expert speakers. The modules are:

Preparatory session : to introduce the workshops and agree ground rules

Planning : to know how to start making legal and financial plans
Caring for life : to gain an insight into available support and care options
Preparing for death : to consider available plans and understand the process of dying
Talking about death : to develop ideas for starting end-of-life conversations
What to do when someone dies : to know the administrative necessities and funeral options
Bereavement : to understand the natural processes of grief and when to seek help
Finale : to summarise the workshop series and encourage further planning and action

The manual can be bought at the Finity online shop or a download is available.