Helplines

Child Bereavement UK

Child Bereavement UK offers a free, confidential helpline to support parents and families when a child is grieving or when a child dies. Child Bereavement UK also offer resources to support young people and information and advice for those who have lost a baby or child. 

Phone 0800 02 888 40, email helpline@childbereavementuk.org or use the Child Bereavement UK webchat for support.

Open 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.

Find out more from the Child Bereavement UK website. 

Cruse Bereavement

Cruse Bereavement offer a free, confidential helpline to provide emotional support to anyone affected by grief. This helpline helps you make sense of grief and how you are feeling. 

Call 0808 808 1677 or contact through the Cruse webform to find support in your area.

Open 9.30 am to 5 pm, Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Open 1 pm to 8 pm on Tuesday.

Find out more on the Cruse Bereavement website. 

Grief encounter

Grief encounter offer a free, confidential helpline which offers support and advice to bereaved children, young people and parents. Grief encounter offer a 1-2-1 live chat session with a grief counsellor and interactive online services. 

Call 0808 802 0111 or email contact@griefencounter.org.uk

Open weekdays, 9.30am to 3pm.

Find out more on the Grief encounter website. 

Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide (SOBs)

Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide over a free, confidential helpline which provides support for those that have been bereaved or affected by suicide.

Call 0300 111 5065 email email.support@uksobs.org for support.

Open every day, 9am to 7pm.

Find out more on the SOBs website.

Sands

Sands offers a free, confidential helpline that provides support for those that have been affected by a death of a baby.

Call 0808 164 3332 or email helpline@sands.org.uk

Open Monday to Friday, 9.30am to 5pm.

Find out more on the Sands website.

The Compassionate Friends

The Compassionate Friends offers a free, confidential helpline to support bereaved parents through providing emotional and practical support.

Call 0345 123 2304 or email helpline@tcf.org.uk

Open every day from 10 am to 4 pm, 7 pm to 10 pm.

Find out more on The Compassionate Friends website.

Services

Amparo

Amparo provides emotional and practical support for people affected by suicide in Cheshire, Coventry, Isle of White, Kent, Lancashire, Lincolnshire, Medway, Merseyside, Portsmouth, Southampton, South Yorkshire, Thames Valley and Warwickshire.

Call 0330 088 9255 for free or email amparo.service@listening-ear.co.uk for support. 

Find out more on the Amparo website. 

Hub of Hope

The Hub of Hope is the UK’s leading mental health support database. It brings local, national, peer, community, charity, private and NHS mental health support and services together in one place for the first time. 

Find support that is right for you on the Hub of Hope website. 

Toolkits and guides

NHS Inform

NHS Inform offers a self-help guide for people that are coping with bereavement or grief. This guide aims to help you:

  • understand the experience of grief
  • cope with the effects of grief
  • decide if you need further help coping with your grief

Find out more on the NHS Inform website.

Support after Suicide Partnership

The Support After Suicide Partnership (SASP) is national hub for organisations across the UK which work together to increase and improve the support available for individuals affected by suicide. They provide guides on:

Find out more on the Support After Suicide Partnership website.

The Compassionate Friends

The Compassionate Friends have developed guides for those affected by bereavement, such as:

Find out more on The Compassionate Friends website.

YoungMinds

YoungMinds has developed a guide for parents and carers to support a child or young person with grief and loss. This includes information on grief, tips for talking about grief and loss, looking after yourself, and grief support services.

Read the grief and loss guide or find out more on the YoungMinds website.