Traumatic Bereavement: Supporting children and young people at school or college

About this training

This evidence-based course has been developed by experts from the UK Trauma Council and is delivered by the Clinical Lead of the Traumatic Bereavement resource portfolio.

It is designed for people with a pastoral role in schools and colleges who would be responsible for supporting bereaved pupils and developing a whole-school approach. Those in counselling, practitioner, or clinical roles may find the alternative course Traumatic Bereavement: Working Therapeutically with Children and Young People more appropriate.

The way a child or young person experiences or understands death, and how they interpret its meaning, can shape whether the loss is experienced as traumatic. When bereavement is traumatic, it can disrupt the typical grieving process, making it difficult for the child or young person to process their loss. Their difficulties may be misunderstood or go unrecognised, even by experienced practitioners, leading to severe and long-lasting challenges. It is vital that these children are identified and given appropriate help and support.

Sudden and unexpected deaths, whether due to serious illness, accidents, suicide, or violence, can increase the likelihood of traumatic bereavement. Children may struggle with distressing memories, unanswered questions, or feelings of guilt and responsibility. Additionally, disruptions to family and community support systems can exacerbate their sense of isolation and confusion.

Delivered online, this training will introduce traumatic bereavement, explain how it differs from more typical grief, and explore practical approaches to support children and young people in education settings who may have experienced a traumatic bereavement.

The number of delegates is intentionally limited to allow for in-depth discussion and to tailor content to the needs of the group.

If you have any questions or would like further information about this training, feel free to contact the UK Trauma Council.

Course tutor

• Beck Ferrari

Aims of this training

The aim of this training is to train SENCOs, mental health leads and pastoral leads in education settings to recognise and support children and young people who may have experienced traumatic bereavement. The training outcomes are to:

• To understand what traumatic bereavement is and how to recognise children and young people at risk.

• To develop confidence in having difficult conversations with traumatically bereaved children and young people.

• To understand how to develop support structures around those adults' supporting children and young people experiencing traumatic bereavement.

• To understand when and how to refer children and young people struggling with traumatic bereavement to specialist bereavement and NHS mental health services.

• To know how to support your education setting's response to a bereavement.

Who is this training for?

This training is for SENCOs, mental health or pastoral leads and for those who have a role in school or colleges directly supporting children and young people’s mental health. This training is also suitable for early years and foundation stage practitioners, frontline education staff working with children 2-6 years.