The power of storytelling at Havens Hospices

When I was 17, I was deputy editor of my school magazine. I wrote a feature about how, during one of our charity weeks, we raised funds for Fair Havens. I still remember interviewing the staff and learning what hospice care meant.

41 years later, I went back. Yesterday I had the privilege of spending time with nine members of the fundraising team at Havens Hospices, running my Power of Storytelling workshop. We explored what makes a good story as well as how the team can tell stories in different ways to engage their audiences. We talked about LinkedIn, which is a great place to share and read those stories.

Havens Hospices plays an extraordinary role in our community. Its two centres, Little Havens and Fair Havens, offer specialist care and support to people of all ages living with incurable conditions, and to their families.

So it wasn’t just another workshop for me - it was a way to connect with a much-loved local charity doing amazing things in the community.

Havens Hospices has developed a lot over the last four decades - and has moved sites from when I first visited as a school boy - but their mission remains the same. I’m excited to see how they can continue using the power of a human story to engage the people that matter.