This Children’s Grief Awareness Week, we are thrilled to announce an exciting partnership between Winston’s Wish and the national membership organisation WAY Widowed and Young, which supports people across the UK who have been widowed before their 51st birthday.
A recent poll of WAY’s members with children – which make up 70% of the charity’s 4,700 members – revealed that four out of five bereaved parents didn’t feel they were able to provide enough support for their grieving child. 1
Together, WAY and Winston’s Wish are partnering to provide full circle support for the whole family following a bereavement. As well as referring bereaved families to each other’s services, the two charities will be joining forces to provide tips and advice to offer help for the parents they support and their children.
The charities will also partner on campaign and policy work, advocating for improved services and experiences of bereaved families both now and in the future.
“Grief can be a complex and isolating experience, impacting every member of the family differently. When a parent dies the emotional and practical challenges of grief can often be overwhelming for children. At the same time, surviving parents face their own difficulties as they attempt to deal with their own grief for their partner whilst also supporting their bereaved child.”
“We hope this partnership between Winston’s Wish and WAY will help to provide a valuable source of mutual support for bereaved parents and their children to help them navigate their grief.”
Fergus Crow, CEO of Winston’s Wish
“We are thrilled to be entering into this partnership with Winston’s Wish. The partnership between our two organisations is built on the foundation that a parent’s well-being is intrinsically linked to their ability to provide effective support to their bereaved child.”
Stephanie Patrick, Chief Executive of WAY
About the full circle partnership
Through the peer-to-peer support services offered by WAY, parents are given their own outlet and community to deal with their grief, which in turn helps to create a more stable and nurturing environment for their children.
In turn the services offered by Winston’s Wish, which help children and young people (up to the age of 25) find ways to cope with grief, offer parents the comfort and assurance that their child is being supported to express their feelings in a safe space. The charities will commit to be one another’s preferred provider of services to offer a full and connected circle of bereavement support to parents and their children.
If you are a parent supporting a bereaved child who would like to find out more about the benefits of joining WAY visit widowedandyoung.org.uk
Source: 1 Based on 372 members’ responses in May 2023
