Scotland’s first not-for-profit funeral directors have already saved bereaved Scots £500,000
In the light of recent findings by the National Funeral Cost Index Report 2019 that low income families are experiencing even more funeral poverty than ever, one local social enterprise has announced they are well on their way to bucking this trend.
New workplace rights to give paid leave to those who have suffered the loss of a child and ensure they are treated compassionately by employers were set out by the government today. Continue reading New law supports all families who suffer the loss of a child
Organisations across Edinburgh will be coming together next week to remember loved ones who have died, as part of To Absent Friends, a Scotland-wide festival of storytelling and remembrance. Continue reading Edinburgh to remember Absent Friends
A LOCAL taxi company has partnered up with a much-loved children’s charity to support bereaved families during the most challenging moments following the loss of a child. Continue reading Local Taxi Firm Provides Vital Support to Bereaved Families
A national study, which is a world first, is aiming to find out whether it’s possible to measure the importance of a funeral in the grieving process – and anyone who has organised or attended a funeral at any time is being urged to participate. Continue reading Bereaved participants wanted for world’s first study into how funerals aid the grieving process
A new service led by Victim Support Scotland (VSS) will provide free, practical and emotional support to victims of crime across the country. The charity has been awarded £13.8 million over three years, part of which will provide for a new homicide service giving families of murder victims access to a dedicated case worker and continuous support. Continue reading Support for bereaved families: funding for new homicide service
Children’s bereavement project Richmond’s Hope in Niddrie has received £2,000 from the STV Children’s Appeal. STV2 presenter and producer Zara Janjua visited the project to present the cheque and meet some of the staff who will benefit from the funding. Continue reading Bereavement project receives £2,000 from STV Children’s Appeal
Continue reading Scots at risk of being unprepared for death
Memorial garden puts research project in the public eye
Members of the public are being invited to place an illuminated lily in memory of a loved one as part of an exploration of death and bereavement. The project will see 1500 individual notes of remembrance displayed at an art installation in the form of a temporary memorial garden in Edinburgh’s Grassmarket. Continue reading Life, Death and Lilies
A coalition of more than 40 charities working to prevent baby deaths and pregnancy loss is today urging an end to the postcode lottery in bereavement care for parents.
Pregnancy and baby loss affects thousands of families each year across the UK and it is vital to offer bereavement care and support to anyone who has lost a child or pregnancy. However, the care offered to parents in hospital is worryingly inconsistent. It can depend on where parents live, at what stage of pregnancy or birth the loss occurs, and whether individual healthcare professionals know how to respond.
Currently, fewer than half (46%) of maternity units in the UK provide mandatory bereavement care training, while one in three Health Trusts and Boards have no dedicated bereavement rooms in each maternity unit they cover. And in neonatal units, 41% of services have no access to a trained mental health worker.
The charities are now calling for:
The call is timed to coincide with the start of Baby Loss Awareness Week (9-15 October) when bereaved parents, their families and friends, unite across the world to commemorate their babies’ lives.
Dr Clea Harmer, Chief Executive of Sands (Stillbirth and neonatal death charity), said: “It is long overdue that NHS Scotland makes the provision of excellent bereavement care mandatory across the country.
“Despite claims that it is a priority, there is still a shortage of dedicated bereavement rooms and too few health care professionals are getting the essential training they need to sensitively support grieving parents.
“Good bereavement care is rooted in simple acts of kindness and respect, giving a family whose world has fallen apart the time they need with their baby, and minimising anything that could add to their suffering. So it is very worrying that parents have told us they can hear the sounds of crying babies, and mothers and fathers congratulating each other on the birth of their healthy babies, while they grieve.
“We believe every parent should be offered the bereavement support they need, when they need it, for as long as they need it. In Scotland, one way to make this happen is for a National Bereavement Care Pathway6 to be mandated and monitored through a new set of guidelines, and to ensure a similar approach is taken across the UK. I urge all those responsible to make sure no parent is left to cope with the death of their baby alone.”
Baby Loss Awareness Week helps raise awareness of how pregnancy and baby loss affects thousands of families each year across the UK. It is a unique opportunity to help families remember their babies, whether it be in public or private, and feel less isolated and alone by giving them the opportunity to join with others.
The Week culminates in a global Wave of Light at 7pm on 15 October when candles will be lit across the world to remember all those babies who have died too soon. Landmark buildings will be lit up pink and blue – the colours of Baby Loss Awareness Week.
For further information on Baby Loss Awareness Week 2017 visit: www.babyloss-awareness.org
