Back to Marie Curie
Settings

Bereavement services and support must sign up to an agreed set of standards, including ensuring they meet the diverse needs of the communities they serve.

The National Bereavement Alliance is currently refreshing the Bereavement Care Service Standards in 2023-24 as part of its work for the Health and Wellbeing Alliance.

NICE and SIGN must develop guidelines for the delivery of bereavement support at all levels

UKCB steering partners have submitted a paper to inform a discussion with NICE about prioritising this work. The most recent NICE guidance around bereavement support dates from 2004. NICE have agreed to include this for consideration in their selection process in April 2024

All public, private and third sector bodies supporting bereaved people must commit to tackling inequalities in access to emotional support following a bereavement

During 2023/24 the National Bereavement Alliance will be refreshing the Bereavement Care Service Standards as part of its work for the Health and Wellbeing Alliance. This project will include a focus on tackling inequalities.

In response to the challenges that people identified in understanding what bereavement support is out there and might help them, the Marie Curie Palliative Care Research Centre, Cardiff has collaborated with national partners to produce a new resource, the Grief Support Guide. Based on research conducted during the Covid-19 pandemic and published on the National Bereavement Alliance website. This is available in multiple languages.

Grief Support Guide

Bereavement through Covid 19

All UK Governments must commission further research to better understand the emotional support needs of people affected by bereavement with a particular focus on understanding how services can be improved for Black, Asian and ethnic minority communities and groups whose grief is disenfranchised.

The National Institute for Health Research issued a policy call in 2022 for Ethnic minority communities’ experience of accessing bereavement support services. The successful project, led by researchers at Kings College London and Sheffield University is now underway.

Governments in each UK nation must invest 79p annually per person in the population for transforming bereavement services over the next 5 years, with a particular focus on better supporting Black, Asian and ethnic minority communities, and others who are currently poorly served.

The UK Government has reviewed the relevant pages of gov.uk, improving clarity about how to seek support for those that need it.

The Welsh Government are maintaining in the financial year 2023/24 a £1m Bereavement Support Grant and £420 for LHB Bereavement Co-ordination, as well as Hospice funding.