Helping Children and Adolescents who have experienced Bereavement and Loss

This event is provided by BOUNCE! Brighter Futures in association with The Sunflower Network.

Self Care Notice:

Please note this training works with complex and emotive topics around bereavement and loss that may also be deeply personal for delegates, depending on their lived experience. There will be a break included on the day (and one to one support will be available if needed,) but please do reflect on whether you feel able to attend – your safety and well being is of paramount importance

Supporting Children and Adolescents who have Experienced Bereavement and Loss with

Christina Enright

Content Summary:

One of the most inevitable and saddest realities of human experience is that of bereavement and loss. For a child who depends on adults to provide them with a secure base to develop emotional wellbeing, the loss of a relationship can be profoundly traumatic. When children are separated from parents the loss brings a range of complex feelings. This course is designed for professionals and those caring for children or adolescents who have experienced bereavement, or any kind of loss.

Learning Outcomes

As a result of attending this training you can learn about:

• definitions of grief, loss and bereavement and mourning
• different theories of grief and mourning
• what research into a child or adolescent’s experience of separation, grief and loss tells us
• about the impact it has on them emotionally and psychologically
• how children of different ages and stages respond to bereavement/loss
• the different ways children can express their distress confusion and grief through their
• behaviour when separated from someone close to them
• about ambiguous and traumatic grief, a common experience for children who have
• experienced trauma, abuse, neglect or complex relationships in their family of origin
• creative strategies that support mourning
• how we can support children to grieve in ways that enables them to process the loss and
• support their emotional wellbeing

About Christina RN, BSc Psychology, Dip in Family Therapy, MA Child Psychotherapy, Dip Clinical Supervision.

Over the past 17 years, Christina has worked as a psychotherapist with children, adolescents, birth parents, foster carers, and adoptive parents. This followed on from 20 years working as a nurse in the NHS. Her experience includes the development of a multidisciplinary clinical service for families experiencing trauma and attachment problems who were reluctant to engage with main-stream social care and mental health services. From 2015-17 Christina provided trauma consultancy to the clinical team developing a children’s service within the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) in the UK.She also delivers training on child development, trauma, and attachment both within the NHS and other education and social care systems across the UK and Ireland. Her special interest is in early childhood development and the impact of trauma on a child’s developing capacities, functioning and behaviour. From her experience working with children who have endured developmental trauma characterised by neglect and abuse, she has found it necessary to use a comprehensive integrated approach to address the multiple complexities which such children present with.

BOUNCE! Brighter Futures is a mental health charity providing specialist counselling and psychotherapy to children, young people and parents. BOUNCE! is committed to excellence and is providing a series of training events in 2024 to support this.