A qualitative study of bereavement support volunteers’ views and experiences on an online Acceptance and commitment therapy-based (ACT) training programme

A total of 17 participants were recruited; age range 33-76 years, female, n = 15 (88%); ethnicity white, n = 17 (100%). Of these, 15 completed ACT-based My Grief My Way training. Nine participants took part in two focus groups (n = 7) or individual interviews (n = 2), Training was perceived positively, with resulting themes and subthemes indicating there was something to suit everyone's learning preferences. Participants described the benefits of incorporating ACT-based principles and strategies as valuable additional tools to current practice, underlining the model's relevance, compatibility and practical application, and was viewed as a good fit irrespective of which therapeutic approach they used with clients. Online ACT-based training and the delivery of ACT-based bereavement support was therefore, perceived as a valuable approach in this context.