Child Grief Awareness Week: How Weldmar supports children and young people experiencing bereavement at Christmas

Christmas should be a very special time – but for those with a family member in Weldmar’s care, or experiencing the festive season without a loved one for the first time, it can be a difficult time to navigate.

Sandra Francis is the charity’s Children and Young People’s Counsellor, part of the Patient and Family Support Services team, and led the invitation to dedicate lights and attend local Light up a Life service this year, in a letter to supporters.

As part of this year’s Light up a Life, Sandra and her colleagues are introducing a new session specifically for families with younger children, who can take part in Christmas crafts, enjoy a mug of hot chocolate, and have an opportunity to remember their loved one.

Sandra says her work extends beyond working directly with families in Weldmar’s care: “I work with children and young people in schools and colleges across Dorset, and often in the run up to Christmas we will have sessions around a special activity, such as making a decoration for their loved one. It gives them an opportunity to be able to talk about what Christmas has meant to them in the in the past and how it will be this year. Sometimes, giving them the space to think about this means they are able to take those conversations home with them.”

Sandra has put together a number of useful activities for families to access during the festive season, which you can access here, and also explains more about supporting children and young people at this time of year: