Warrnambool and District Community Hospice said demand for palliative care services in the south-west have been gradually increasing, and more volunteers are needed to provide in-home care.

"South-west regional palliative care has seen an increase in demand for palliative care support, particularly within the Corangamite Shire since 2017," community liaison Catherine Baily said.

"We identified a problem in terms of people needing support to die at home so we've expanded our service to Corangamite.

"We want to train volunteers from the region to work in hospice in-home program and the money will go towards online training due to COVID-19."

Demand for palliative care services has increased over the years, with 31 patients from the shire as of January this year, up from 25 in 2017.

The hospice is just one of the many community services set to get a leg-up from Corangamite Shire Council's 2020-21 community grants program.

Ms Bailey said the $1000 grant they received will help them build their volunteer base and get more people on the ground.

Currently to become a palliative care volunteer requires undergoing 27 hours of face to face training over nine weeks.

The team will now be able to deliver that training online.

Other grant winners include:

READ MORE: Warrnambool's hospice volunteers are learning to talk about death

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