Bereavement Resource Kits

We are excited to share with you a brand new project for Guy’s Gift which has been developed as part of our response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Our Bereavement Resource Kits have been developed as part of a project to have resources available for schools and families across Coventry and Warwickshire, which can support their grieving process.

Example Bereavement Resource Kit for Primary Schools

There are times when Guy’s Gift can’t get to meet a chid or young person immediately, and at the moment we are unable visit schools at all.  We are offering both one-to-one and group work remotely using zoom, however this limits things like being able to share a book with one another. Our thought is that if the book is in school with the young person and a copy with their counsellor/bereavement support worker, then we can still share together despite being apart.

These books can be used in school for the child or young persons therapy session, could be taken home to read within the family, or the school may be able to use the books along with our recommended activity ideas within school too.

The very first resources are making their way out to a number of primary and secondary schools over the next couple of weeks, with more to follow soon hopefully.

Example Bereavement Resource Kit for Secondary Schools

This project has been made possible due to various generous donations from charitable trusts across the country who recognise the value books and resources like this can bring. We are still fundraising for this project to be able to provide books for more schools across Coventry and Warwickshire. If you would like to donate to this project you can do so here (please leave a note in the message space to tell us you would like the donation to go towards this project).

The resource kits come contained in a Guy’s Gift branded bag, along with one of our ‘Buddy Bears’. We’ll give a quick shout out here to the team at RT promotions who have done a wonderful job for us over the years with these products.

A member of staff at a local school we spoke with about this project told us that:

“As a Pastoral Manager of a large Primary School, I too am feeling the strain the that current circumstances are having on our children and families. There are more children feeling anxious, especially around the subject of illness and death and sadly more who have experienced the loss of someone they love.

Guys Gift have come up with this brilliant and creative way to try to tackle the new issues that have arisen together by equipping those on the frontline within schools with the tools needed for the job!“

If your school or college would like to be on the list for a resource kit, please complete the request form on the resources section of our website

Of course, this does not take away the value and importance of 1:1 or group sessions with our counselling and support team.
If you would like to make a referral into Guy’s Gift please call us on 0845 467 3035

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update September 2020

As schools return after the long summer break, and an unusual end to the last academic year, we wanted to let you know a little bit more about what Guy’s Gift will be able to offer.

We are pleased to let you know that we are now taking referrals again, and this can be done in the usual way giving us a call on 0845 467 3035 or by sending an enquiry through the ‘Keep In Touch’ page on the website and we will give you a call back.

We have taken the decision to carry out all sessions (assessments, one-to-one, groups) remotely via telephone or video call for the remainder of 2020. Whilst we know that some schools would welcome us attending in person, we recognise that travelling across the county and visiting lots of different schools would not be sensible under the current climate. We will review this decision in January 2021, and take into consideration both the value of face-to-face sessions alongside the risks associated with COVID-19.

Lastly, we wanted to update you about the annual Lantern Walk, which we will be working towards for December. This will be taking place ‘virtually’ this year, and we will let you know more information about this as the date approaches. Watch this space!

We do hope that everyone is enjoying getting back into school and some sense of normality with this new school year.

Lilly's cake sale fundraiser

Today we are giving a shout out to Lilly and her friends after Lilly’s mum got in touch to let us know about a fabulous fundraiser they did in aid of Guy’s Gift.

Lilly’s mum told us: ‘My daughter held a cake sale on our drive along side her friends and sister, Lilly planned, made flyers and delivered them, shopped for all the ingredients and spent 4 hours cooking and decorating with our support, as she wanted to say thank you for all the help and support that she had received from  Guys Gift after my mum passed away.”

We are so pleased that you were able to support Guy’s Gift and don’t those cakes look great!

Thanks!

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update

We are pleased to let you know that we are begining to get the team back up and running here at Guy’s Gift.

For now, we still can’t take on new referrals whilst we make sure that all those who are already waiting have been contacted. Once we are in a position to take new referrals once again, we will update you all.

In the meantime, don’t forget that the team are on hand to answer any queries and offer support to families remotely. We now have team members in (on a part time basis) covering all of our normal working hours.

We look forward to being able to safely begin our work with children and young people again as soon as is appropriate.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update

As more children begin to return to school, and lockdown is starting to be relaxed, we want to reassure you that we are working behind the scenes to find new ways of working which are safe for everyone.

Whilst we are unable to return to visiting children and young people in school at the moment, as soon as we are safely and appropriately able to begin support again, we will.

In the meantime, don’t forget that we are available Tuesday PM, Wednesday all day and Thursday all day to offer advice and guidance at this stage.

Fab Fundraising event by Rotary Club of Coventry Jubilee

Back in February, the Rotary Club of Coventry Jubilee held a Murder Mystery evening to raise funds for Guy’s Gift. A fantastic £601 was raised to go towards supporting us to provide bereavement support for children and young people across Coventry and Warwickshire.

President John said: “A good many people seem to know or know of children who have struggled with bereavement, and the needs of Guy’s Gift strikes a chord.”.

This recognition of the importance of the support we are able to provide is great, and we’re pleased to be able to provide that professional support across the county. This donation goes a long way to continue doing just this.

A great big thank you to everyone involved in what sounds like a good evening raising funds for us here at Guy’s Gift.

Get in touch!

Don’t forget, our phone lines are open to provide advice and guidance remotely. Whilst we have fewer staff than normal working, our response times may be a little slower but we will get to you as quickly as we can.

The phone lines are open every Tuesday afternoon (12:30-16:30) and all day Wednesday and Thursday (08:30-16:30).

Alternatively, drop us an email (info@guysgift.co.uk) and we will get back to you as quickly as we are able.

#StayAtHome

Whilst we all stay at home, if you are shopping for your groceries online please consider supporting Guy’s Gift at the same time.

Everytime you shop via the Give As You Live portal, you can raise funds for Guy’s Gift.

We rely on donations to keep the service available, and this is a great way to help us to help you!

Limited opening times for foreseeable future.

Another day, another update relating to changes we are making due to the impact of Coronavirus (COVID-19). The changes we are having to make are very much a temporary situation, but as with all of us we currently don’t know what the timescale will be before we are able to return to normal.

As of today, we have had to temporarily reduce the hours our telephone lines are open.

We are available:
Tuesday 12:30 - 16:30
Wednesday 08:30 - 16:30
Thursday 08:30 - 16:30

We are unable to take referrals for support at the moment, but can offer advice and guidance remotely.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) update

With immediate effect, we are no longer able to attend face-to-face sessions.

This follows the government advice regarding social distancing, and school closures across the UK announced this evening.

If you are currently meeting with a Guy's Gift counsellor, they will be in touch with you to talk about how we can manage this.

Our phone lines remain open as normal, Monday to Thursday, and we will continue provide as much support remotely as we are able.

Coronavirus (COVID-19): What this means for Guy's Gift and the families we support

Guy’s Gift is continuously monitoring the Coronavirus (COVID-19) situation and is following Government and NHS advice, and local advice from councils and schools.

The Guy’s Gift team is applying strict hygiene measures between all sessions and complying with individual schools’ procedures on a local level.

We ask all families and schools to advise us if they have symptoms, feel unwell or have been in contact with any known or suspected cases. You can contact us on 0845 467 3035 or info@guysgift.co.uk

Any changes to our normal working practices will be communicated to schools and families as appropriate.