Help for professionals working with grieving children and young people

If you’re a professional working with a grieving child or young person, we’re here to help.

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How can Winston’s Wish help professionals supporting grieving children and young people?

Caring for a bereaved child can be complex. At Winston’s Wish, we understand the difficulties and the worries that come with supporting a bereaved child or young person. We’re here to let you know that we’re here to lean on at the hardest of times.

As well as providing instant access to expert bereavement support and information to young people, Winston’s Wish helps adults supporting bereaved children and young people, whether a parent, family member, teacher, friend, or professional, to provide the best support possible.

We can also help you advise and find the best and most appropriate bereavement support for a child you’re supporting to access directly.  

If you work in a school we have dedicated resources just for you – visit our support for schools page.

From helping you find the right words to have important conversations about death, dying and grief to advising on the best and most appropriate support for children and young people you work with, we’re here to give you the confidence to support a bereaved child you’re supporting.

Information & Advice

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Information and advice

There’s a wealth of grief related information and advice right here on our website.  Search for blogs, videos, and activities covering a variety of topics including ‘how to tell a child someone has died’, ‘coping with birthdays, anniversaries and special days’ and ‘managing separation anxiety’. You can also find information by cause of death.  

All of our content is created by our bereavement specialists and is updated regularly in line with best practice. 

VIEW ADVICE

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Training

Our range of training programmes are designed to equip professionals with the knowledge, understanding, and tools to support the bereaved children and young people they work with.

From mini spotlight sessions to study days, workshops and bespoke packages, our training covers a range of grief topics with specialisms in rapid response (supporting schools in the immediate aftermath of a death in the school community) and SEND bereavement training. 

VIEW TRAINING

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Books & E-Books

You can find a large collection of specialist books and e-books written by Winston’s Wish to help you support grieving children and young people. They cover death by suicide, homicide, serious illness and in the military and are suitable for young children through to teenagers.

VIEW RESOURCES

Speak with a Bereavement Specialist

Our team of bereavement specialists offer guidance and advice, helping to equip you with the tools you need to provide the best support. Our team is available to speak to from 8am to 8pm, Monday to Friday (except bank holidays). There’s no need to book an appointment and no lengthy wait times.  

If you need support in a language other than English, we have access to telephone interpreters and we can use the Relay UK app if you have hearing or speech difficulties. 

Call

Call free on 08088 020 021

Email

Email us on ask@winstonswish.org or fill out our contact form and we’ll reply within two working days.

Live chat

Click the blue ‘Chat with us’ button at the bottom right of your screen.

Text

Text or WhatsApp us on 07418 341 800 (open 3pm-8pm, Monday to Friday).

Looking for direct support for your bereaved child?

Winston’s Wish provides a range of information and services directly for children and young people (up to 25) who are bereaved or facing the death of someone important to them.   

We believe in empowering children and young people to take charge of their bereavement support journey, offering them choice and control in what services they engage with.  

Children and young people can explore our range of age-appropriate information and resources, and if they wish, reach out directly to our bereavement specialists by live chat, email, text or phone.  

Information and support for bereaved kids (12 and under) 

Information and support for bereaved young people (13 to 25) 

If your child or young person isn’t sure what support they need or where to start, they are encouraged to complete an enquiry form. That form will be carefully assessed by our bereavement specialists to determine the best and most appropriate service based on their needs. We encourage you to support your child or young person to make their own enquiry.  

Parents and carers can submit enquiry forms for a child aged 12 or under.  

Form for adults enquiring on behalf of a child under 13 

Please note we cannot accept enquiry forms on behalf young people aged 13.  

We are unable to process any enquiries without the prior consent of the child or young person.  

Did you know that Winston’s Wish is a charity? We provide our information, advice and services free of charge to ensure no child or young person has to grieve alone. If you’d like to make a donation or fundraise to ensure we can continue to be there for bereaved children and young people across the UK please click here.  

MAKE A REFERRAL

Bereavement counselling for children and young people

For most bereaved children and young people, the support and comfort they find through our content and on-demand services is enough. However, for those who have experienced severe, traumatic and/or multiple bereavements, or if a young person has complex personal circumstances, it may be that they need more focused and dedicated support.

Bereavement counselling may help. If it’s found that a child or young person could benefit from counselling, they will be matched with an appropriate counsellor who will help them to safely explore their feelings and experiences.

Please note that bereavement counselling is accessed by referral only. Young people aged 13 or over are encouraged to complete their own referral if appropriate, please feel free to help them with this. If you are submitting a referral on behalf of a young person, someone from Winston’s Wish will assess the child or young person’s individual circumstances to ensure they receive the right service for them. If it’s decided this isn’t the right service for them, a member of our team will guide you towards the most appropriate support.

MAKE A REFERRAL