‘We help children, young people, parents and families to rebuild their lives when a child grieves or when a child dies’. This is Child Bereavement Uk’s mission statement and it’s such an important one. As Independent Celebrants we often work with families who are experiencing grief. When that impacts a child, or is due to the death of a child, it can place extra stress on family at an already challenging time.
We’re not taught much about death as children. Often, the first experience we have of someone dying, shapes our belief and opion about end-of-life. If the experience is a negative one, with nobody there who knows how to support what we need, it can become traumatic.
That’s why Child Bereavement UK is such a lifeline.
When you are grieving, you’re not always the best person to comfort your child. That’s hard to hear, but it is the truth. If you are experiencing the emotional rollercoaster of loss, knowing there are people who can help is a huge relief. I make a point of taking details of several support charities and organisations, when I go to visit families to plan a Life Celebration.
Like Child Bereavement UK, many of these services depend on donations to keep providing support. It’s a sad fact that a large proportion of the support groups that provide such important care were started by the very people who needed them. They become real champions for others, giving huge amounts of their time and energy to keep going.
What services are offered by Child Bereavement UK?
- They have a help-line, 0800 02 888 40 which is available Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. This is a confidential service and provides support to children, families and professionals.
- Bereavement Support Groups are available in various locations throught the UK.
- They create information on how to support young people, including these videos on how to talk about death and how to suppport a grieving child.
- They offer specialist training to professionals who work with children and young people who are experiencing bereavement.
- Take a look at their site, to see all the services they offer. You can also make a donation here.
How are we going to support them in 2023 and 2024?
We’ve made a commitment to donate a percentage of every recorded training we sell over the next 24 months. For courses costing £15, we will donate £5. For the £10 courses, we’ll donate £3. In addition, for every 10th Celebrant who takes either our Wedding Celebrant training, or our Funeral Celebrant training, we will donate £100.
We’d love you to help us spread the word about this amazing charity and the services they provide. Please share one of the links to their site from this blog (we’d really LOVE you to share the one for donations). Thank you and we’ll update you on our donation progress.
UPDATE – we made our fourth donation of £100 today, 19 December 2023.