St Clare Hospice celebrates BBC Children in Need’s 2020 Appeal  

ST Clare Hospice is celebrating BBC Children in Need’s 2020 Appeal day and the support which the Hospice has received to fund their Children and Young People’s Bereavement Service. 

The BBC Children in Need Appeal show will be taking place on BBC One on the evening of Friday 13^th November from 7pm, and coincides with the start of a new three-year round of funding from BBC Children in Need for the hospice charity’s Children and Young People’s Bereavement Service. The Hospice’s children’s service was awarded a second three-year major grant for £107,193, to fund the service from October 2020-23. 

The West Essex and East Herts hospice charity launched their bereavement service for children and young people in June 2017 and has supported more than 400 local children, young people and their families since the project began. The specialist service, which is run by a dedicated children and family counsellor, provides a range of services to support the children, grandchildren and loved ones of those cared for by St Clare, as well as those under 18 years who have experienced any other bereavement (not related to St Clare) who live in West Essex or East Hertfordshire. 

Outlining the difference that the BBC Children in Need funding makes to the children and young people St Clare supports, Sara Nicholson, St Clare’s Children’s Service Therapist, said:   

“We are so grateful to BBC Children in Need for funding this vital service for a total of 6 years so far. The funding enables us to provide a specialised service where children, young people and families can explore their grief, express their emotions and feelings, through memory work, play, art and grief activities. Children and young people often feel isolated in their grief, so providing a service where they can tell their story is vital in allowing them to connect with their grief. We also prepare children and young people for the death of a loved one. Broaching this subject is incredibly hard, so supporting families, and helping them to create memories is a really important part of our work. Losing your mum, dad or loved one as a child can affect you for the rest of your life, so it is vital that St Clare provides this support to complete the circle of care for the whole family.”  

St Clare Hospice’s Director of Income Generation, Rosie Knowles, said: “It is fantastic to have been awarded another major grant, for the next 3 years, from BBC Children in Need to fund our children’s counselling and bereavement support services.” 

“The support of BBC Children in Need over a period of years, helps us with sustainability and security in our longer term planning, to make sure that we can here for our community in the future. The coronavirus pandemic has had a significant impact on our community fundraising in recent months, and significant donations like this help ensure that our frontline services will be able to keep running. Now, more than ever, as we face the difficulties of the covid-19 situation and the longer term impact it will have on young people’s mental health, our children’s counselling service is even more vital.” 

For more information about St Clare Hospice’s children’s bereavement support service please contact the Patient and Family Support Team on 01279 773762 or visit: stclarehospice.org.uk/care/support-families