£350 For 300: Child Bereavement Charity Launches Ambitious Campaign

Rochester-based child bereavement charity, Holding On Letting Go (HOLG) is launching its biggest campaign yet: to raise £105,000 to support 300 children and young people through bereavement over the next year – and they need local businesses’ help.

They’re inviting supporters to sponsor a child’s journey by funding one of the 300 children and young people they will help over the next year. They allocate £350 to provide each child with everything they need, including bereavement care, creative resources and ongoing face-to-face or telephone/video call support.

They aim to reach their ambitious goal through one-off gifts, monthly donations, or fun and creative fundraising activities.

Bereavement support weekends

Every year, HOLG is there for children and young people who are struggling to cope after the death of a loved one. Their services include bereavement support weekends, where each month, a different group of children join them for creative and gentle ways to explore, express and understand their grief.

They use arts, crafts, music, and shared activities designed to bring comfort, connection, and hope.

They also support parents and carers in a separate group throughout the weekend, to help them to understand child bereavement, and the behaviour, emotion and reactions it can evoke.

Their campaign will fund everything needed to support a child who comes to our weekends.

Schools

They’re also in schools, supporting children if a classmate, teacher, or someone close to the school and the pupils dies. HOLG also works with staff to enable them to offer bereavement support when they are not there.

Securing the funding they need to continue their vital work over the next year will ensure that every child who needs their support gets it.

Get involved

They’re looking for businesses, groups of colleagues, individuals, families, friends or community groups to help them reach their goal.

Whether you choose the ease of making a simple donation or would prefer to take part in a challenge or event, there are lots of ways businesses can get involved:

• Collection pots – let HOLG know if you’d like one at work
• Sponsor a child – a great way for businesses to meet CSR goals
• Have a whip-round in the office
• Take on a sporting challenge which could also be a great team-building exercise – marathon, bike ride, parachute jump, 3 Peaks Challenge – head to HOLG’s events page for more – or come up with your own unique idea!
• Hold a work social event – quiz night, gala night, concert, tea party, coffee morning, auction, race night, raffle, curry night, dinner party…there are so many ideas!
• Head to HOLG’s shop to make a one-off donation of £350 or a value of your choice
• Set up a direct debit of £30 for 12 months (email [email protected])
• Set a target – pledge your £350 and have fun reaching it
• Hold a sale – cakes, clothes, jumble
• Sponsored event – set a target and take on a little challenge

HOLG CEO Jules Tobin explains the campaign: “Grief is a heart-breaking experience for anybody, but particularly for a child. And, sadly, if they struggle to process their bereavement, the impact can affect them far into the future.

“We are committed to making sure we’re there for every child and young person that needs our help. Donations and fundraising are a lifeline for a small charity like ours.

“Raising the funds we need through our £350 for 300 campaign gives us the security to know we can carry on with our vital work and help every child that needs our support.

“By donating or raising £350, you’ll be helping a child or young person through one of the most difficult times of their young lives – a wonderful gift that could benefit them for a lifetime.”

Hear from some of the families HOLG has helped about the difference their support made to them:

Charlotte initially bottled up her feelings when her mum died when she was just 14: “I feel like HOLG helped me to start grieving. They helped me understand my emotions and that grief can be unpredictable.”

Kathy’s children Matilda and Finley were supported after their dad died by suicide: “It’s so good to have HOLG on-hand to help us – just to feel that there’s an expert who is always available. The kids are better supported and they’re doing really well.”

Lisa’s daughter Alysia, 5, attended a bereavement weekend after her dad died in a car accident: “She loved all the arts and crafts activities and it was so beneficial for her to be with other children who had also lost someone. It made her feel like she wasn’t the only one.”

Joe remembers how HOLG supported him at the age of 5 when his mum died. It’s an experience that’s inspired his future career in architecture– looking at a child-centred approach to the design of bereavement spaces:
“My memory of HOLG is that they adapted the space for the bereavement weekends to make it feel cosy and inviting.
“Being in a room with other children who are dealing with the same things as you, feels a lot more personal and emotive. And HOLG made me feel so welcomed; they didn’t need to know my mum to be empathetic.”

Liam’s children Elodie and Brayden struggled in different ways when their mum died:
“Elodie used to find it hard to go to ‘Mummy’s garden’ where Amy is buried but this year she asked to go – a big thing for her. Brayden used to ask but he would get upset – but he can now go there and kiss his hand and touch the gravestone.”

Carly’s son Edward is learning to open up after his dad died when he was 6:
“It’s still very early days for us and we’re in the ‘take it as it comes’ phase but Edward has gone from hardly mentioning Andy to talking about him more frequently. He’s starting to find it easier to talk about things.”

Find out more about the £350 for 300 campaign here:
holg.org.uk/350-for-300