Childhood bereavement support groups

Winston's Wish

Winston's Wish is the leading childhood bereavement charity and the largest provider of services to bereaved children, young people and their families in the UK.

They offer practical support and guidance to families, professionals and anyone concerned about a grieving child. They believe that the right support at the right time can enable young people to live with their grief and rebuild positive futures.

Winston’s Wish provide support for bereaved children and young people up to the age of 18. They also support their parents or carers. Whether the person was ill for sometime or a death totally unexpected, they work closely with children and families, in a variety of practical and creative ways, to create an atmosphere where they can share their thoughts and feelings and meet others.

Winston’s Wish
Westmoreland House
80-86 Bath Road
Cheltenham
GL53 7JT

Helpline: 08452 03 04 05
General Enquiries: 01242 515157
Website: www.winstonswish.org.uk
Email: info@winstonswish.org.uk

The child-focused approach supports the whole family. The Winston’s Wish range of services includes the following:

• national helpline for anyone caring for a child coping with the serious illness or death of a family member (08452 03 04 05)
• group work with bereaved children and their families
• individual work with bereaved children and their families
• range of publications, resources and educational films
• support programme for schools
• tailor-made training and consultancy for professionals.

The Childhood Bereavement Network (CBN)

The CBN is a multi-professional, national federation of organizations who work in various settings with bereaved children (aged up to 18 years), their families and other care-givers. It involves, and is actively supported by all the major bereavement care providers in the UK.

A new video is available showing a group of young people, aged 13 to 16 years, from a range of backgrounds, talking about the kind of help they needed to cope with bereavement. They discuss how family, friends, schools, police, doctors etc., can help. For more information about the video and/or the work of the CBN, contact:

Childhood Bereavement Network
8 Wakeley Street
London, EC1V 7QE
Telephone 020 7843 6309
Fax 020 7837 1439
Email: cbn@ncb.org.uk
Website: www.childhoodbereavementnetwork.org.uk

The CBN have also produced a set of four postcards, called "I can...You can". "I can".. for bereaved children and young people. "You can".. for bereaved children and young people to give to parents, carers, friends and teachers.

Cruse Bereavement Care

Cruse House
126 Sheen Road
Richmond, Surrey, TW9 1UR
Telephone 020 8939 9530
Fax: 020 8940 7638
Young People's Helpline: 0870 167 1677.
Website: www.crusebereavementcare.org.uk
Young People's Website: www.rd4u.org.uk