Bereavement Books - helping children and young people coping with the loss of their loved ones

Location: Children's and Families Service, Fife Specialist Palliative Care Service

Fife Specialist Palliative Care’s Children and Families Support Service offers information, guidance, emotional support and counselling for patients and their families. They support partners, parents, children and young people who are coping with the impact of their loved one’s life-limiting illness, death or bereavement.

In the past year it is estimated that 125 families across Fife have benefitted through these bereavement books.

When a parent is seriously ill, families can face many difficult conversations and changes. Parents may need support to help their children understand what is happening, adapt to changes in their parent’s health and abilities, and prepare to say goodbye. Together, they explore common concerns such as making sense of illness and loss, understanding personal and family experiences, coping with emotional reactions, adjusting to changes in family relationships, and finding ways to hold on to hope while planning for the future. They help families navigate this challenging time with care, compassion and understanding.

One key resource used by this team is bereavement books, which are funded by Fife Health Charity and the donations we receive. They are used to support children of all ages prepare for the death of someone close and provide adults with key themes and vocabulary for talking to children and young people and help to support them emotionally.

We are proud to be able to give families a tangible resource that will increase their confidence when having the worst conversations of their lives with their children/young people. These books allow children and young people to begin to understand, process and find the words they need to navigate their challenging and highly emotional situations following the terminal diagnosis of a parent or trusted guardian.

Sandra McKay , Children’s and Families Practitioner:

I didn’t know where to start to explain what is happening to me and us as a family. These books are like a security blanket and give me a starting point.

Parent

Further feedback from parents and guardians:

“I didn’t know where to start to explain what is happening to me and us as a family. These books are like a security blanket and give me a starting point”

“It is hard to get my younger child to listen but they love books so it gives us something nice to look at and focus on”

“These books are beautiful and we are so grateful to be given them”

“These books help us to help our children say how they are feeling and make it much easier for them to tell us” “These books gave us words when we didn’t have any of our own”

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Bereavement Books - helping children and young people coping with the loss of their loved ones

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Bereavement Books - helping children and young people coping with the loss of their loved ones

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