At Farleigh Hospice, volunteers are woven into everything we do. From the welcome desk to the kitchen, the shops to the gardens, hundreds of people give their time every week to help us care for people across mid Essex. This Volunteers’ Week, we spoke to four of them about why they chose to give their time, and what volunteering at Farleigh means to them.
Coralie Taylor, Welcome Team Volunteer
Coralie has been volunteering at Farleigh Hospice for seven years. Every Wednesday afternoon she is one of the first people visitors see when they walk through the door, and she understands exactly how much that moment can matter.
As part of the welcome team, Coralie helps people find their way around, supports those who arrive feeling anxious or upset, and keeps things running smoothly at reception. She also looks after the hospice shop and takes payments, and is a familiar and friendly point of contact for staff, other volunteers, and visitors alike. “You’re the face of Farleigh when people walk through the door. You’re the first person they meet.” When someone has just lost a loved one, the team moves quickly and quietly to make sure nobody is left waiting or feeling alone. “Some people come in quite distressed. We try and help them, not to step in, but just to be there.”
Before volunteering, Coralie had a long career in accountancy. When she retired, she knew straight away she wanted to do something completely different, something that put people at the centre. She found Farleigh online, went for an interview, and has never looked back. Ask her what she enjoys most and she genuinely cannot choose. “I love the whole thing. There’s nothing I don’t like.” Coming in each week gives her purpose and a sense of belonging she clearly values. “I say to people I work at the hospice, but I have to quickly add I’m a volunteer. What would I do if I wasn’t here?”
She is also keen to challenge the idea that volunteering in a hospice is a difficult or sombre thing to do. “A doctor once said to me, oh, it’s so sad, it’s depressing. I said, it’s not depressing, it’s far from it. There are sad occasions, but when they’re sad, you just try and help, be kind to them.” Now 81, she shows no sign of slowing down. “I would never give it up unless I felt I couldn’t cope with it. But I can’t see that ever happening.”
Hugh, Kitchen Volunteer, Courtyard Café 
While Coralie is welcoming people at the front of the hospice, Hugh is helping keep things running behind the scenes. He volunteers in the kitchen at the Courtyard Café every Wednesday morning, supporting the catering team with deliveries, stock control, washing up, and setting up tea trolleys. It is practical, hands-on work, and Hugh is well suited to it. “I am an organised and proactive person,” he says, “so I just get on with it.”
Hugh spent his career at the London Stock Exchange and the Financial Conduct Authority. When he retired, he wanted to do some voluntary work and found Farleigh through the Council for Voluntary Service in Chelmsford. Last Christmas he helped at the staff lunches and volunteered on Christmas Day itself. “I really enjoyed helping my team to make it a special day for the patients,” he says, “so I will be doing the same again this year.”
He values the structure volunteering gives him, as well as the sense of belonging. “I am happy to come in for one day a week and know that I am doing something useful. It is good to feel a part, however small, of an organisation like this.” His advice to anyone considering it is straightforward. “I would tell them to go for it. I cannot see a downside to volunteering. I will carry on for as long as I can lift a box of chips.”
Jody Wilkey, Inpatient Unit Volunteer
Further into the hospice, on the Inpatient Unit, Jody Wilkey is doing some of the most hands-on volunteering of all. She works three four-hour shifts a week, helping the healthcare assistants and nurses with day-to-day tasks so they can focus on patient care. She helps serve lunch, sits and chats with patients, makes teas and coffees for them and their families, and keeps everything clean, tidy, and stocked up.
Jody’s connection to Farleigh goes back further than her volunteering. She has run four marathons for the hospice and taken part in other fundraising events. But over time, she felt she couldn’t keep going back to the same people to sponsor her. “I just thought, if I can’t do that, I will give up my time. To me, I was still giving something.”
She had wanted to volunteer for a while, but waited until her youngest child moved up to secondary school before applying. She finds the work genuinely rewarding, even when it is hard. “Yes, there are some sad moments working in the IPU, but it is also rewarding and it’s worth it. I really love it.” Her advice to anyone thinking about volunteering is simple. “Don’t overthink it, just do it. Even if it is a couple of hours a week. It really does make a difference to them and you personally.”
Clive Stallwood, Garden Volunteer 
Farleigh’s garden volunteers were recently recognised as Team of the Year, reflecting the care and consistency they bring to the hospice grounds. Among them is Clive Stallwood, the longest-standing member of the team, who has volunteered every week since 2001.
Clive began his volunteering journey when Farleigh was still based at New London Road. “I went for the interview with Mark Palmer the Facilities Manager when Farleigh was still at New London Road, but by the time my volunteer role was all organised, it was at North Court Road.”
After a career as a stockbroker, Clive was looking for something different in retirement. “It was a gradual process of retiring, but I still wanted to do something with my time. I have always felt this was a worthwhile project and charity. I couldn’t work in the Inpatient Unit, but outside I felt I could contribute something.”
That contribution is clear across the gardens today. From maintaining beds to tending the greenhouse, Clive is involved in all aspects of the space. “Although weeding is not very popular, to keep a nice neat garden it has to be done regardless.” More recently, he has spent much of his time in the greenhouse. “We currently have geraniums; I have saved about 150 of them… I have also prepared the tomatoes growing in pots in and around the greenhouse.”
For Clive, the value of volunteering is both practical and personal. “The camaraderie and seeing something at the end of the day that is worthwhile. You’ve got all the colleagues you’re working with and you’re producing a garden with some beautiful flowers.”
Over the years, he has seen the gardens evolve and recover, particularly following the challenges of the pandemic. “It is lovely to see people enjoying the gardens again; visitors, patients and staff coming out for a wander.”
He is especially fond of one quieter corner. “I think the Secret Garden is nice but sadly underused – perhaps it’s too secret!”
For anyone considering joining the team, his advice is simple. “If they enjoy gardening and the camaraderie of being with people helping out, then it is worth coming along and doing what you can. There is no expectation that you have to do things in a certain time… A nice bonus is we usually take turns bringing a packet of biscuits to snack on, whilst drinking a cup of coffee.”
Together, these stories show the dedication, generosity and commitment of our Farleigh Hospice volunteers. Farleigh Hospice simply would not be the same without them, and we are incredibly grateful for their support.
Could you be a Farleigh volunteer?
Whether you have a few hours a week or a whole day to give, there are volunteering opportunities across Farleigh Hospice to suit a wide range of interests and skills.