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Supporting a bereaved child: information & advice
If you are supporting a grieving child or young person often your first concern is to get things right and not to do any more damage. However if you take time to listen and show that you care you really can't go far wrong.
There are some ideas on this page that may help you to give more confident and effective support.
What Professionals can do to help
- Provide information for parents about how the person died
- Provide information for parents on how children grieve
- Suggest tools which may help parents to talk to their children e.g. Books
- Be prepared to give time to both children and parents
- Encourage the parents to involve the child in the funeral
- Help the child to express feelings (games and books help)
- It can be helpful to make memory boxes and journals
- Sign-post children to bereavement support groups where they can meet others in similar situation
Encourage parents to
- Be honest with children can make things easier
- Talk to children using words they understand
- Avoid using euphemisms e.g. "we are going to lose mummy" can be confusing for very young children.
- Remember that children need information a bit at a time
- Encourage children to ask questions
- Answer questions honestly and simply
- Find ways to involve the children
- Not be afraid to ask for help and give them ideas of where to get the appropriate support they need.
- Involve the school
