Who Are We?

We are a charity that provides relief to those are in need by reason of bereavement through death, family breakdown, separation, or divorce, through the provision of training and resources to deliver Grief Peer Support Programmes for children and teenagers.

Our Mission

How do we do this

History of Growing Through

Board of Trustees

Growing Through International

Ways to Support Us

Why Grief Support?

Bereavement affects a person’s emotional, spiritual, physical and mental health and well-being. When they don’t have anyone to talk through their feelings they will often be overwhelmed with a range of emotions.

The Benefits of Grief Support Groups

The Evidence Behind Grief Support Groups

Why Provide Grief Support

Statistics for Family Breakdown

Statistics for Children’s Bereavement

Our Programmes

Growing Through programmes are peer support group curriculum’s that are biblically based. They are targeted, evidence-based programmes of intervention and prevention, to provide help for children to cope with their grief now, in the early stages, in order to prevent problems stemming from unresolved grief in their future.

Resources

During the upheaval of a deeply emotional time of loss in our lives, we can have a lot of questions or worries that we want to search out answers for. Growing Through may not provide all the answers to those questions but, we hope we can give you some guidance to help you navigate your journey of grief through our informational resources provided here.

Training

How to Start a Group

Parenting Resources

Following a Death

Questions or Worries a Child may have Following a Death

Tips for Dealing with a Death

Ways to Remember your Loved Ones

Following a Family Breakdown

Questions or Worries a Child may have Following a Family Breakdown

Tips for Dealing with a Family Breakdown

Grief Talk

Children’s Grief

Stages of Grief in Children

Grieving Children’s Behavioural Patterns

Children’s Concept of Death

Feelings

Self Help

Books for Children Experiencing Grief

Books for Children Experiencing Family Breakdown

Books for Parents

Testimonals

Children’s Concept of Death

0 – 2 Years

Concept of Death Comments
  • No Concept of death
  • A baby can sense that something is wrong 
  • They can become more irritable
  • They only deal in the present
  • Clingy and afraid of strangers
Concept of Death
  • No Concept of death
  • A baby can sense that something is wrong
Comments
  • They can become more irritable
  • They only deal in the present
  • Clingy and afraid of strangers

2 – 5 Years

Concept of Death Comments
  • Death is seen as reversible and not permanent
  • May feel they have caused the death
  • Engage in ‘Magical thinking’ and fantasies to fill in the ‘gaps’ in knowledge
  • Childs exposure to fantasy stories can make them think that people can ‘come alive’ again – e.g: Sleeping Beauty, Snow White
  • If, for example, a child was ‘sick’ before death of a person and touched them, they may think they have caused the death
  • Regressive behaviours or psychosomatic symptoms
Concept of Death
  • Death is seen as reversible and not permanent
  • May feel they have caused the death
  • Engage in ‘Magical thinking’ and fantasies to fill in the ‘gaps’ in knowledge
Concept of Death
  • Death is seen as reversible and not permanent
  • May feel they have caused the death
  • Engage in ‘Magical thinking’ and fantasies to fill in the ‘gaps’ in knowledge
Comments
  • Childs exposure to fantasy stories can make them think that people can ‘come alive’ again – e.g: Sleeping Beauty, Snow White
  • If, for example, a child was ‘sick’ before death of a person and touched them, they may think they have caused the death
  • Regressive behaviours or psychosomatic symptoms

5 – 7 Years

Concept of Death Comments
  • Death is seen as reversible but as understanding increases will be viewed as permanent 
  • Still prone to magical thinking
  • They will start to ask more questions about causes of death as understanding increases.
  • May become preoccupied with death
  • Regressive behaviours or psychosomatic symptoms
Concept of Death
  • Death is seen as reversible but as understanding increases will be viewed as permanent 
  • Still prone to magical thinking
Concept of Death
  • Death is seen as reversible but as understanding increases will be viewed as permanent 
  • Still prone to magical thinking
Comments
  • They will start to ask more questions about causes of death as understanding increases.
  • May become preoccupied with death
  • Regressive behaviours or psychosomatic symptoms

8 – 9 Years

Concept of Death Comments
  • More exposure to death and comprehension of death is viewed as permanent 
  • They lack compassion and may ask embarrassing or insensitive questions that maybe upsetting with their reasoning – e.g: ‘Are you going to die?’ These questions stem from the child’s need for security
  • Questions about cause of death will become more In-depth and frequent as they process their need for understanding
Concept of Death
  • More exposure to death and comprehension of death is viewed as permanent 
Concept of Death
  • More exposure to death and comprehension of death is viewed as permanent 
Comments
  • They lack compassion and may ask embarrassing or insensitive questions that maybe upsetting with their reasoning – e.g: ‘Are you going to die?’ These questions stem from the child’s need for security
  • Questions about cause of death will become more In-depth and frequent as they process their need for understanding

10 – 12 Years

Concept of Death Comments
  • Death is seen as permanent 
  • May still struggle with magical thinking – e.g: struggle with guilt that certain thinking or actions have caused the death
  • Child will talk more about death due to increased reasoning skills and want more information
  • May be very anxious or fearful regarding further losses
Concept of Death
  • Death is seen as permanent
Concept of Death
  • Death is seen as permanent
Comments
  • May still struggle with magical thinking – e.g: struggle with guilt that certain thinking or actions have caused the death
  • Child will talk more about death due to increased reasoning skills and want more information
  • May be very anxious or fearful regarding further losses

Adolescents

Concept of Death Comments
  • Death is seen as permanent 
  • May struggle with denial – ‘this hasn’t happened!’
  • Naturally a time of a lot of change, so death can make their grief more complex
  • May act as if everything is okay because they feel the need to be strong
  • Grieving can sometimes be delayed due to peer pressure/expectation 
Concept of Death
  • Death is seen as permanent
Concept of Death
  • Death is seen as permanent
Comments
  • May struggle with denial – ‘this hasn’t happened!’
  • Naturally a time of a lot of change, so death can make their grief more complex
  • May act as if everything is okay because they feel the need to be strong
  • Grieving can sometimes be delayed due to peer pressure/expectation