LGfL has launched a new Bereavement ‘Toolkit’ for schools and their communities to help support the effective management of grief and death.
As part of the ongoing partnership between LGfL and Child Bereavement UK, a new bereavement toolkit has been launched which brings together a suite of new and existing support material for school communities to manage different aspects of bereavement for young people.
The toolkit features three separate but inter-related resources:
Managing a Sudden Death in a School Community (2018):
An accessible support gateway to the effective response to death within a school community. Simple, short guidance through quotes, external inks and video interviews with experts all help to provide the information you need at the right time to ensure the whole school community can work together to support each other.
The resource was highly commended at the 2019 Bett awards and shortlisted for an ERA award in 2019 and can be accessed here.
Supporting a Bereaved Pupil (2019):
Empowering teachers and professionals in education to support bereaved pupils. This comprehensive, free-to-access training tool has been developed for staff in schools, to increase their understanding, skills and confidence to support pupils and their families when they experience a bereavement.
The resource was shortlisted for both the 2020 Bett and ERA awards and can be accessed here.
Having Honest Conversations About Death and Grief (2021):
Covid 19 has sadly brought about increased death and grief to many people’s lives and children are no exception. So, during the summer 2021, we have worked with the team at Child Bereavement UK to produce a new resource that aims to boost confidence for staff in having honest conversations in school with young people about death and grief.
Although there is some direct reference to the impact and consequences of Covid 19 – the resource is broader in its scope; supporting important conservations within school communities with an acknowledgement that young people are managing the consequences of death within their lives that can be both related and unrelated to Covid. It is important that for whatever reason, young people are supported sensitively and appropriately as they come to terms with the impact this will have on their lives.
The aim of this new resource is to give confidence to teachers and educational professionals working with young people in schools to help them prepare and confidently engage in discussions, equipping them with skills and techniques to last them into their adult lives. The resource can be accessed here.
LGfL Content Manager, Bob Usher’ commented, ‘Our previous collaborations have delivered focussed, specialist support for educational professionals working with young people. Rather than keep separate the three resources, we have brought them together into a ‘toolkit’ where teachers can access highly relevant and empowering support for tackling difficult subjects relating to young people and bereavement. We have heard countless examples of how the existing resources proved to be invaluable within school communities, many of which are managing the impact of death and grief daily. We aim to support the whole school community and working with Child Bereavement UK continues to result in high quality, specialist and easily accessible advice portals for schools and the communities they serve.’
The partnership between LGfL and Child Bereavement UK is based on a simple truth that ‘Grief is a normal and natural response to loss, yet how pupils are supported can have significant impacts on long term outcomes.’
Tracey Boseley, National Development Lead for the Education Sector at Child Bereavement UK commented, ‘We are aware that many professionals worry that they will say the wrong thing and they lack confidence when talking about death to their pupils, yet they have all the skills to do so.
Our new resource, Having Honest Conversations About Death and Grief, has been developed in partnership with LGfL to support teachers and professionals working with young people. The suggested activities offer flexible and accessible opportunities for pupils to learn more and be able to talk about death and grief with trusted adults, within a safe environment.'
We would love to get feedback about how your school has made use of the Bereavement Toolkit, please do so via our Twitter or Facebook pages.