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Heartbeat: Chapel of Rest transformed to tranquil viewing room

July 19, 2021

Thanks to kind and generous donations, the Chapel of Rest at City Hospital has seen a transformation in recent weeks, taking it from dark and dated to a bright and welcoming environment where families can say their final goodbyes to loved ones.

Leading on the transformation of the Chapel in to it’s new form ‘The Bereavement Viewing Room’, Chaplaincy Lead, Mary Causer joined forces with Mortuary Manager, Lauren Wood to see if they could see an end to the outdated wallpapers and drab décor of the long standing chapel. Bringing in the support of Your Trust Charity and the estates team the transformation quickly took shape.

Sharing her thoughts on the transformation, Your Trust Charity Fundraising Manager Amanda Winwood said: “I was approached by Mary and Lauren to see if we could help to refresh the Chapel of Rest at City. It was clear that it had been quite some time since it last had a revamp. It was quite sad to see what our patients last journey included and I felt we desperately needed to do something.

With the support of Phil Foley from the estates team and funds from the Trust, we quickly set to work, but we knew from the start it would be a tall order to deliver the transformation we wanted.”

Sharing her thoughts on the revamp, Mortuary Manager, Lauren Wood said: “The Bereavement Viewing Room is an important place for our patients and their families, it’s one of the last times families get to see their loved ones and for that to happen in a building that’s cold and unwelcoming impacts on their experience. The room isn’t just for adults, it hosts grieving families who are visiting their babies and children, so it’s important we can make the environment welcoming, so they can spend their final moments in comfort and ease.”

Whilst the team worked hard to plan their transformation, it was a chance meeting with a generous donor which really brought the project to fruition. The team were approached by Richard Sapcote, Pre-construction and Framework Manager at BSN Group who wanted to make a donation to the charity. To the teams absolute delight, BSN pledged to not simply donate funds, but that but they would take on the project and help complete the works.

“This was a huge step and meant we could do everything we wanted to and fulfil in our mission to enhance the journey of all those using our services.” beamed Amanda. “Our mission is to continue our care until a patient leaves the hospital.

“So work began, and the first coat of paint in the waiting room quickly transformed the area in to a calm lilac oasis of tranquillity. Alongside new furnishing and wall art, the room has been revitalised. The viewing room is now light green and has new wall art, screens for privacy and also lots of lights to create a calm environment. The outside area has also been tended to and now has new seating, plants and fresh paint work, so when families arrive they see a tidy welcoming environment.”

Sharing his thoughts on the project, Construction Manager, Richard Sapcote said: “We are immensely proud to have supported the Trust in refurbishing the Chapel of Rest. Over the last twelve months we have enjoyed a great working relationship with the Trust and successfully completed a number of projects. As a young dynamic company, we truly believe in supporting our clients’ good causes, contributing to our own commitment of investing into social value and the local community.

“It is great to see our voluntary contribution has made such huge difference and so pleased we have provided an improved and pleasant environment to those using the Bereavement Viewing Room.”

Colleagues who would like to support families to arrange to see their loved ones in the bereavement viewing room at City or Sandwell are advised to contact the mortuary team directly on ext. 4259 for City and ext. 3280 for Sandwell.