Skanda Vale Hospice

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Skanda Vale Hospice

Skanda Vale Hospice helps people find strength, dignity and peace of mind during some of life’s greatest challenges.

We offer highly individualised care and support to families affected by life-limiting illnesses, completely free of charge.

13/02/2026

We're looking for a Volunteer Fire Safety Trainer.

It's not the first role people think of when they think of hospice volunteering — but it's one of the most important.

Our small team of fire trainers help the hospice stay safe, compliant and quietly prepared. It's a few hours a week, working alongside others, with training and support along the way.

If you have experience in fire safety, firefighting, or incident management — even if you're not yet a qualified trainer — we'd love to hear from you.

📍 Skanda Vale Hospice, near Llandysul
⏰ Around 8 hours a month, flexibly arranged

Find out more and apply → skandavalehospice.org/hospice-volunteers/volunteer-fire-safety-trainer/

12/02/2026

In 2023, Georgina Jones lost her 16-month-old son Osian, who was born prematurely. She'd always loved dancing, ever since she was a child — and after Osian died, she had the urge to dance.

Together with her friend Leah Siân Davies, who had lost her own brother and sister, she started asking: could this help other people through grief too, or is it just us?

It turned out it was what other people needed as well.

Grief Disco is part ritual, part movement, part celebration of the people we love and have lost. There's a dedication tree where you can hang a message to someone who's died. A wind phone — a Japanese tradition where you pick up the phone and talk to someone who's gone. House music from DJ Luna. And when you arrive, you're handed a permission slip that says you have permission to feel joy.

As Georgina puts it: "Talking about grief is one thing, but grief is a feeling and an energy." If you burst into tears on the dancefloor, no one will usher you to the toilets. They'll sit in it with you.

No alcohol. No pressure. No forced fun. Just a space where grief and joy are allowed to exist side by side.

Grief Disco comes to The Queens Hall, Narberth on Saturday 7th March. Doors at 2pm. Pay as you feel. Ages 16+.

Ticket link in the comments below

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1KcvVKqdaB/

10/02/2026

People often think volunteering in a charity shop is “helping out on the till for a bit”.

Sometimes it is. More often, it’s learning how to read a room, make a space feel easy, and turn a bag of complete chaos into something someone else will love.

Behind every well-organised rail, there’s a volunteer who’s learned when to step in, when to step back, and how to let go of being “right” — all in the same shift.

We’ve put together five skills you actually gain from volunteering in a charity shop — and why they matter beyond the shop.

Link in the comments below.

05/02/2026

"Classical music's not my thing," announced one of our patients last week, settling into a recliner with a brew.

An hour later, same patient: still there, asking Nicola Thomas and Daniel Davies about bow technique, what piece they'd just played, and how long they'd been performing together.

The Tônau Cello Duo had that effect on the room.

Both musicians come with the kind of experience that usually fills prestigious concert halls — Nicola has played internationally with the BBC Symphony Orchestra; Daniel serves as Artistic Director at Music at Nantwen. They came to us through Music in Hospitals & Care, which brings world-class musicians directly to hospices and care settings.

Another patient put it simply: "It was so wonderful. Such beautiful music. We are so lucky and fortunate that we get to experience music at the hospice like this. It really enhances our day."

That’s the quiet power of live music played well — it doesn’t ask for enthusiasm or prior knowledge. It simply meets people where they are, and something shifts.

With thanks to Nicola, Daniel, and Music in Hospitals & Care.

28/01/2026

Sometimes the best thing is a slice of homemade cake and someone who'll listen while you eat it.

Join us for our first coffee morning of the year – excellent coffee, the full tea situation (including all the herbal options for the virtuous), and a lovely selection of cakes made by our volunteers. Expect generous slices, and at least three things involving chocolate.

No agenda, no awkward small talk requirements, no need to know anyone. Just turn up, find a comfortable chair, and let the morning take care of itself.

Everyone welcome.

Thursday 29th January, 10:30am-12:30pm at Skanda Vale Hospice, Saron, SA44 5DY.

21/01/2026

We’ve just put up a new 'family tree' board, with faces, names and roles laid out in groups. It’s great to see the whole team there on the wall, and to pause, look, and spot familiar faces.

While we were at it, we’ve made a few other quietly satisfying improvements: new bookshelves, a proper home for Kiera’s Nurse of the Year award (with space for more…), a tidy new leaflet rack, and some pre-Spring clear-outs.

A bit of care and attention — and a small celebration of a team we’re very proud of.

18/01/2026

Cate is a volunteer nurse at Skanda Vale Hospice, after a long career in the NHS.

She talks about time, choice, and the difference it makes when care is done with someone, not to them. About cups of tea, ordinary conversations, and being able to nurse in the way she believes is right.

Two minutes with Cate, from inside the hospice.

10/01/2026

We've been busy with a bit of woodwork at Skanda Vale Hospice.

New signs now mark each room—slices of well-seasoned oak, sanded smooth and laser-engraved, installed by a small team of volunteers who enjoyed every stage: cutting, sanding, designing, engraving, fitting. There's something quietly satisfying about seeing a chunk of wood become part of the place.

The reception desk is new too—built from our own beech blockwood—opening up the space and bringing a little more light into the entrance. Practical, simple, and made by hand.

If you like the idea of rolling up your sleeves, working with your hands, and helping keep a place like this running, we'd love to hear from you:

https://www.skandavalehospice.org/hospice-volunteers/maintenance-volunteer/

09/01/2026

"Well, where do I start? From the moment my wife and I walked through the doors of Skanda Vale Hospice during our visit from Scotland to see my sister, we were met with the most warming welcome, full of love and acceptance.

We were quickly swept into the communal area, where we were met with many volunteers who all acknowledged us and welcomed us with their own unique blend of compassion. We were introduced to other patients who were delighted to talk to us and include us in their own life stories, as if we were old friends.

Before I travelled to see my sister, I was filled with dread as she was very unwell, and I was concerned about how I would feel leaving her when we had to return to Scotland. However, after speaking with her and experiencing firsthand the atmosphere created by the environment of Skanda Vale Hospice, these anxieties were soon dissolved.

The absolute compassion emitted by the love of all the staff and volunteers, and hearing first hand the experiences of both my sister, other patients, as well as the staff and volunteers, we returned to Scotland relieved and with an inner peace which is hard to describe.

The love and peace my wife and I felt was reflected in my sister’s own words, saying that she had found such incredible support, love and assisted care during this part of her life journey.

My sister said: “Amongst other things, Skanda Vale Hospice has given me time to think, to organise my thoughts and experience companionship in a way I never thought existed.”

We would love for you to read this letter to your staff and patients to let your volunteers and nursing staff know the difference they are making. Their care extended much further than the hospice and sent my wife and I away reflecting on how ‘care’ can be delivered differently whilst maintaining clinical excellence in an environment conducive to peace, calm and inner spiritual exploration. You are all so inspiring and are making a difference!

I know my sister really benefited and continued to benefit from the love shown.

I would personally like to thank every single person I encountered, especially the patients, for including our family in their lives at this moment in their journey.

Your love and care was truly felt today."

----

Beautiful words from Alan Laing - a relative of one of our hospice patients.

06/01/2026

❄️ Snow, ice… and a sparkling hospice! Yesterday, our volunteer cleaning team braved the wintery roads to get the hospice gleaming for next week's respite guests.

Sunshine through the garden’s stained glass, mops, dusters, teamwork, and a big pot of cheesy pasta for lunch.

Fancy helping out a few hours a week? Good company, worthwhile work, and flexible times that fit around your life. Find out more: https://www.skandavalehospice.org/hospice-volunteers/volunteer-cleaner/

02/01/2026

"One of the most beautiful things that we can offer on a hospice respite week is taking patients to the elephant house. It's just something that people can't get anywhere else. It's a completely unique experience.

It's life-changing, and often a really emotional experience for people. Because being in that presence of an elephant is... I mean, it's pretty monumental for most people.

It helps them open up, relax, and shed this armour.

This letting go – it doesn't usually happen on a first, or second or third visit. It can even take some patients a year, if they’re still with us. We’ve had people say, ‘I’m not religious, I’m not spiritual.’ It just takes time for them to relax in the hospice.

And they just see me around, helping feed somebody or helping move somebody, or greeting someone, or just having a chat. And then, bit by bit, they’re like, ‘Oh, this person’s quite nice!’ You know, not this kind of weird, scary nun, or chaplain or something.

That grace, that spiritual essence, is there in the hospice, and you’re just an instrument. You’re helping people to gain a little bit of peace and to be in a better place before they die, which is I think, the greatest service you can offer."

Sister Ally - Spiritual Care Lead

01/01/2026

Happy New Year! 2025 was a full one at Skanda Vale Hospice.

We firewalked (barefoot), got soaked at the London 10K, took patients to meet Valli the elephant, and learned that Santa turns up more reliably on a Harley than in a sleigh.

There were cream teas at sunset, choirs at the Summer Fete, and Derek the pony reminding us that personal space is optional.

This year, more people reached out to us than ever before, more people came through the day hospice, and patient satisfaction stayed exactly where we want it — very high.

In early 2026, we’re increasing respite care from 4 nights and 5 days, to 6 nights and 7 days each month. That matters.

Thank you to everyone who helped make the year what it was.

Onwards!

Address

Skanda Vale Hospice
Saron
SA445DY

Opening Hours

10:30am - 4pm

Website

http://www.skandavalehospice.org/

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