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How we can help: Support for children and young people

Sometimes, at home we can only offer so much support to a child and even after a period of time a child may be finding it hard to adjust. If they are feeling sad or angry all the time, having trouble with sleeping or eating, or struggling with school and friends, it may be time to get them further support.

If you have worries or concerns about your child, the 565 Service at St Elizabeth Hospice can offer guidance and support. We offer support to young people aged 5-18 in East Suffolk whose loved one is known to St Elizabeth hospice, and is living with a life limiting or progressive illness. We also offer bereavement support, which extends to families who may not have had previous involvement with the hospice, whose loved one died from a progressive disease and families who are bereaved due to Covid-19.

Support may include:

  • advice and guidance to parents and family members on how to talk about death and dying, what to expect in grief behaviours and what might help
  • conversations with the child’s school about support needs and how this might be best managed.
  • child and parent sessions to help express emotions
  • group activities with other children of a similar age
  • a confidential space to the child or young person, either online or face to face, to explore their experiences and encourage ways of expressing and managing emotions
  • where appropriate, we may signpost to other organisations.

Our referral criteria for 565 Service support at St Elizabeth Hospice:

Emotional Support for children who are living with a loved one who has a long-term illness: Bereavement support :
  • Living in East Suffolk
  • Adult relative known to the hospice
  • Living in East Suffolk
  • Bereaved of an adult relative who had a progressive or life limiting illness, or due to COVID-19
  • Do not need to have had previous involvement with the hospice.

If you do not meet our criteria for bereavement support, the LivingGrief Hub can help to find the most suitable service: LivingGrief | Bereavement Support in Ipswich & East Suffolk (livinggriefeastsuffolk.co.uk)

 

To speak to a member of the team, or to make a referral, please contact us on our enquiry line, 0300 303 5196, Monday to Friday, 9am – 4pm, alternatively, email on emotionalwellbeing@stelizabethhospice.org.uk.

Things other young people have said about our support:

“I gained more confidence and feel more comfortable talking about my problems.”

“I was able to talk about my problems in a safe space”

“I’ve learnt how to cope and to talk about mum”

“I am more accepting of my feelings and even though I didn’t think I needed it at first, it really did help”

“I like the fact that not only was I listened to, I was given useful suggestions on ways to cope”

“I felt supported in what I was going through and listened to. I felt that someone was there for me who really cared about how I was doing and what I was going through.”

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