Our school is fully committed to the emotional health and wellbeing of our children and young people and that of our staff. We are dedicated to the continual development of a healthy and thriving school community and strive to work towards this in all aspects of school life. We are passionate about providing an ethos, environment and curriculum that can provide support during difficult times, including a time of death or serious illness.
Every 22 minutes in the UK, a parent of dependent children dies, leaving about 41,000 bereaved children / young people each year. Many more are bereaved of a grandparent, sibling, friend or other significant person, and, sadly, around 12,000 children die in the UK each year.
Within our school community there will almost always be some children who are struggling with bereavement – or sometimes the entire school community is impacted by the death of a member of staff or pupil. We would hope to not encounter such circumstances, but the statistical inevitability of such an occurrence implies the necessity of having a Bereavement Policy in place in order that we might be proactive, rather than reactive, when responding to these challenging situations.
Empathic understanding in the familiar and secure surrounding of school may be all the bereavement support some children – or staff – require, though referral to more specialist support should be a consideration where the impact of grief is more complex. The Schools Counselling Partnership (tel: 07554 008179) are able to offer additional support and a selection of resources can be found here.
The core intentions of the policy are:
The executive headteacher has overall responsibility for the policy and its implementation, for liaison with the governing body, parents/carers, the Local Authority and other relevant outside agencies.
The executive headteacher will:
(This includes spiritual advisers, school counsellors and mentors)
To have bereavement support training and cascade learning to other staff.
NB: It is important that all staff feel confident in delivering support for pupils, supporting each other and implementing this policy. To this end it is desirable that the whole school staff have some awareness of bereavement through whole school training if possible.
1. Contact with the deceased’s family should be established by the headteacher and the family’s wishes respected in communicating with others. Factual information is
essential to avoid rumour and confusion, whilst being sensitive to cultural and religious considerations.
NB: We need to be mindful of the use of social media site and its impact throughout this time as rumour and gossip spread quickly.
2. Staff should be informed before pupils and be prepared (through prior training) to share information in age-appropriate ways, as agreed for each individual circumstance.
3. Pupils should be informed, preferably in small groups, by someone known to them. A decision should be made as to whether this information should be given as part of a
whole school approach or if only certain groups of pupils need to be informed.
4. A letter to all school families affected should be composed at the earliest opportunity and a decision made as to whom, and how, it should be distributed.
5. The school should be aware that the school timetable may need a degree of flexibility to accommodate the needs and wellbeing of children affected by the situation. However, minimal disruption to the timetable offers a sense of security and familiarity.
6. Staff affected by the death will be offered ongoing support as appropriate.
7. In consultation with the bereaved family, arrangements for the funeral attendance maybe clarified, with the consideration of full or partial school closure in some
circumstances.
8. Where necessary, a press statement should be prepared by the headteacher.
9. The school should be aware that the impact of bereavement follows a child throughout their school life so information should be recorded and shared with relevant people, particularly at transition points. The subsequent schools should be aware of ongoing bereavement issues for new pupils. To this end it is important to have effective communication with ‘feeder’ schools.
NB: Many of this policy’s guidelines are only appropriate when the school community as a whole has experienced a death, for example a teacher, pupil or another staff member.
Perhaps a more common experience for teachers and learning support staff is that of a pupil experiencing the death of a parent. Whole school or class activities will not normally be appropriate in this situation, but the needs of that individual pupil should still be given careful consideration.
If a child has been bereaved it is important to involve them in decisions about how the school manages issues relating to their loss. Talk to the child about their preferred way of informing their peers about what has happened and about the support they need.
Approved by:
Executive Headteacher
Published:
30/04/2020
Last Review Date:
April 2025
Next Review Date:
April 2026