When a parent has died

Young people we have supported talk about some of the difficulties they faced and what helped them after the death of their mum or dad.

Latest

The Pennant Family

The Pennant family share how they’re fundraising for Child Bereavement UK in memory of their son Ned and how they’ve raised funds with three previous challenges.
Ministry of Sound Classical

The Wyldes | Cornwall
Rudimental

The Wyldes | Cornwall
Y Not Festival

Pikehall | Derbyshire

Explaining funerals to children: what happens at a burial?

Watch our short animated film which explains what happens at a burial and helps answer questions children may have.
Explaining funerals to children: what happens at a cremation?

Watch our short animated film which explains what happens at a cremation and helps answer questions children may have.
Joey Essex talks to bereaved young people

Joey Essex, Patron of Child Bereavement UK talks to young people who have received support.
Volcano

Watch our short animated film which helps children to cope with difficult feelings like anger, worry and guilt so that emotions don’t build up and erupt - like a volcano.
Puddle jumping

Watch our short animated film which aims to help adults understand how grieving children tend to ‘puddle jump’ in and out of their grief.
The Invisible Suitcase

Watch our short animated film designed to help bereaved children and families to understand their grief and how to manage it.
Animation about a bereaved sibling

Watch our short animated film made by students to help young people find support.
Animation about a bereaved student

Watch our short animated film aimed at reaching young people and students.
Remembering someone who has died

Ways in which bereaved families and children can remember someone important to them who has died.
How we grieve

Guidance on ways bereaved people grieve and what can help.

Telling a child that someone has died

It is important to tell a child of any age when someone important in their lives has died, and ideally this is done by someone who is closest to them.
Supporting bereaved children and young people

Children and young people grieve just as much as adults but they show it in different ways. Find out how you can help them and more about child grieving.
Grieving for a child of any age

The agony of losing a child of any age is unparalleled. There is no age or point in time that makes it any easier. No parent expects to face the death of their child and no grandparent expects to lose their grandchild.
When a grandparent dies - the impact on children and young people

The death of a grandparent is often a child or young person’s first encounter with the death of someone important. Parents have a great deal to manage when their own parent or carer dies. There is the grief associated with their own loss, but also the reactions and responses of their children to the death of a grandparent.
Children's understanding of death at different ages

Babies and young children have no understanding of the concept of death yet, long before they are able to talk, babies are likely to react to upset and changes in their environment brought about by the absence of a significant person.
Child Bereavement UK training

Child Bereavement UK designs and delivers training for professionals in health and social care, education, the emergency services and the voluntary and corporate sectors, equipping them to provide the best possible care to bereaved families.
Contact us

Contact details for our Helpline, departments and services.
When your baby dies

When a baby lives only a short time or dies before birth due to miscarriage, stillbirth or a painful decision to end the pregnancy, people may assume that the loss is not important. This is simply not the case.
Children's understanding of death at different ages

Guidance on children's understanding of death at different ages and stages of development.
UK death & bereavement statistics

A parent of children under 18 dies every 22 minutes in the UK; around 23,600 a year. This equates to around 111 children being bereaved of a parent every day.

Short guidance films

Our short films are delivered by support practitioners and cover a range of topics on grief and bereavement, providing guidance on what can help. Read more

Books and resources

A list of books and resources relating to grief and bereavement and what may help. Read more

Others' experiences

Some bereaved families find it helpful to read about other peoples’ experiences and how the support they have received has helped them. Read more