WALKING through the door of Skanda Vale Hospice you cannot help but feel humbled.

Far from sadness or despair, the warmth and generosity of spirit on show is obvious from the moment you arrive, dispelling any preconceived ideas of what a hospice might be.

Founded in 1993 by monks and nuns from Skanda Vale multi-faith monastery, the hospice, based just off the A484 at Saron, near Llandysul, six miles from the monastery at a separate, independent site, cares for anybody over the age of 18 diagnosed with a life-limiting illness with palliative care needs.

It primarily serves Ceredigion, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire, free of charge, but what makes Skanda Vale so unique is that it is run almost entirely by volunteers.

And now they need more people to help out as they look to expand on what is already on offer at the six-bed respite facility, where every thought has been given to making the patient’s time as comfortable as possible.

The room themselves, while highly functional from a practical perspective, do not have that ‘hospital’ feel.

Hospice carer Sister Ally said: “We currently provide one week’s respite per month (7 nights/8 days) i.e. patients come on the Friday and stay until the following Friday or come for a weekend and then someone else comes in Mon-Fri, and two one day sessions of day hospice per week.

“'We are trying to expand our service in the new year to provide 11 nights respite and so we really need volunteers of all types - many of which do not need to have previous experience, just a desire to help and give of their time in whatever way they are able for the benefit of others, as we never know what situation we might find ourselves in in the future.

“Our service is quite unique in that it is a clinical service almost entirely volunteer-based, our only paid staff are nurses apart from a maintenance man and accounts assistant, who both only do one day a week. Everybody else is unpaid from carers to senior management. “

Jane Coles, Skanda Vale’s clinical volunteer co-ordinator is also still very much a hands-on palliative care nurse at the hospice and is one of the handful of paid nursing staff – herself, a lead nurse, deputy lead nurse and two nurse assessors.

The rest of the staff is made up of volunteers, both on the clinical side and for any other role you could possibly think of.

“We have a bank of qualified nurses so we have one on each shift and the rest is made up of amazing volunteers with a wealth of different skills and experience,” said Jane.

“It is not just people with medical experience that we need. Many of our volunteers have no medical or nursing experience but are interested in helping others and there is a role for everyone.

“We have a retired GP and a current working paediatrician who both volunteer. There is no hierarchy and everyone will help each other. I find I now have time to spend with people and it is so rewarding that you feel you can make a difference.

“The atmosphere here is so friendly and happy. It is not a morbid, as many people might fear.

“Yes, there are some very ill people but that does not mean there is no place for laughter. It is important to get away from the idea of a hospice being a miserable place. Far from it, it can be such a happy place.

“We have six respite care beds and would dearly love to expand on the service we already offer. There is such a demand out there for a service such as ours, especially with growing pressure on the NHS.”

The contribution of the volunteer team is staggering – well over 3,100 hours each month.

And it takes a whole host of different skills and abilities to run the hospice from nurses, carers, cooks, catering assistants, cleaners, administrators, accounts, IT/graphic design, drivers, receptionists and handy men/women to gardeners, complimentary therapists, shop assistants, outdoor maintenance and fundraisers, including people willing to do collections in supermarket.

“We go to great lengths to make sure our volunteers feel valued and listened to, offering appropriate guidance, support and training. We’ll cover your expenses and local travel costs. For certain roles we can also arrange accredited training,” said Sister Ally.

“We require people to help in the laundry, cook meals, assist in the kitchen, make cups of tea, clean and spend quality time with patients.

“In some places, volunteers can be a bit of an add-on; there to support the paid staff. Here it’s different; the vast majority of our team, including senior management and care staff, are volunteers. Everyone is here because they want to help. That helps create a special atmosphere.”

For more information on any role at the hospice, call 01559 371222 or contact jane.coles@skandavale.org (clinical volunteer coordinator), sister.ally@skandavale.org (fundraising coordinator) or sister.aquila@skandavale.org (volunteer coordinator).