Luna Suicide Bereavement Training

Our evidence-based training is designed for people working with children and young people.

Why is suicide bereavement training for people working with children and young people vital?

It is estimated that around 25 children lose a parent to suicide every day in the UK, amounting to more than 9,000 per year.

Therefore, the chance of your organisation knowing a child or young person who has been or will be affected by parental suicide is high.

Evidence suggests that children and young people who have lost a parent to suicide are more than twice as likely to be hospitalised for depression and are three times more likely to die by suicide themselves.

We are committed to helping you break this cycle of poor mental health and suicide risk.

Understanding what to say to children and young people who have lost a parent to suicide, where to signpost them for specialist support and what age-appropriate resources are available, can reduce their long-term emotional and psychological problems stemming from their complicated grief.

In the UK there is no national formal referral system or coordinated response service in place for children and young people who are bereaved by parental suicide, so organisations need to be proactive in order to be prepared to support them. Luna is ready to provide training for your organisation to equip you to provide timely support. 

Our Training

Luna Suicide Bereavement Training

Supporting children and young people bereaved by suicide

Designed for anyone who works with children and young people. Developed through international research. Delivered by trainers with lived experience of parental suicide.

Our three-hour interactive online session will help you feel more confident supporting children and young people after suicide bereavement.

There will be opportunities to share experiences and ask questions during interactive elements and breakout sessions.

Each of our CPD-accredited training sessions can accommodate up to 20 people. All participants will receive certificate of completion and an invitation a to become a Luna Ambassador.

Luna Foundation is a social enterprise founded in March 2022 by Anna Wardley. Born out of her international Churchill Fellowship research and personal experience of parental suicide, Luna aims to transform the way children and young people are supported after suicide bereavement, particularly after the death of a parent or primary caregiver.

It will help you understand:

  • why suicide is different to other types of bereavement for children and young people
  • how children make sense of death and express grief at different developmental stages
  • personal experiences of parental suicide and its impact
  • the risks and protective factors for children and young people bereaved by suicide
  • what to say and what not to say to children and young people after suicide bereavement
  • practical actions you can take to support children and young people bereaved by suicide
  • what suicide-bereavement resources are available to support children and young people

Luna Suicide Bereavement Training for Early Years Practitioners

Supporting children aged five and under bereaved by parental suicide 

Designed for anyone who works with children aged five and under. Developed through international research, lived experience insights and collaboration with early years practitioners.

Our three-hour interactive online session will help you feel more confident supporting young children after suicide bereavement.

There will be opportunities to share experiences and ask questions during interactive elements and breakout sessions.

 Each of our live training sessions can accommodate up to 20 people. Our training is CPD-accredited and participants can claim three hours of professional training time. All participants will receive a certificate of completion and an invitation to become a Luna Ambassador. 

Luna Foundation is a social enterprise founded in 2022 by Anna Wardley. Born out of her international Churchill Fellowship research and personal experience of parental suicide, Luna aims to transform the way children and young people are supported after suicide bereavement, particularly after the death of a parent or primary caregiver.

It will help you understand: 

  • how the death of a parent by suicide can impact children aged five and under
  • how young children make sense of death and express grief and trauma at different developmental stages, and how you can help them
  • personal experiences of parental suicide and its impact
  • the risks and protective factors for children and young people bereaved by suicide
  • how to talk to young children about suicide
  • practical actions you can take to support young children in early years settings bereaved by suicide
  • what suicide-bereavement resources are available to support children aged five and under and their families
  • policy and safeguarding considerations 

Why Luna?

Lived experience

Direct experiences of parental suicide are at the heart of our organisation, with our training delivered by those with lived experience.

Unique training

The training we offer is unique in preparing professionals to support children and young people after the loss of a parent or primary caregiver to suicide.

Evidence-based

Our training was developed from our CEO’s international Churchill Fellowship research on improving support for children after suicide.

Join our community

Everyone who completes our training has the opportunity to become a Luna Ambassador, a growing network committed to supporting children after suicide.

Online delivery

Training is offered online, to fit around busy professional schedules and maximising accessibility for participants throughout the UK.

Not-for-profit

We’re a social enterprise operating on a profit-for-purpose basis with any surplus reinvested in improving support for suicide-bereaved children

I have come away with a much better understanding of suicide bereavement and have plenty of useful tips to use in my own practice and conversations with students.

Nicole E.

It was very interactive, informative and interesting. I now feel more confident in supporting a student bereaved by suicide.

Philippa D.

Taking away the stigma was a vital message to take away. And the need to be honest at an age appropriate level.

Maria D.

The trainer made us all feel welcome and delivered a difficult subject matter with sensitivity.

Danny W.

Amazing training and very thought-provoking in terms of what I can implement within our team.

Imma E.

One of the most moving, informative, heartfelt and beneficial workshops I have ever attended.

Emma A.

Sensitively delivered, thought-provoking training which provided some useful insights into how to support young people bereaved by suicide.

Natalie G.

Excellent. Informative. A good balance in interaction and learning. Compassionate and warm. I felt very safe.

Gill B.

There was a lot of important and useful information and I enjoyed the breakout rooms and discussing with other professionals.

Alex H.

The overall presentation of this training was amazing. The interaction with others, the trainers and online access was very well executed.

Allison B.

Fantastic workshop, really helpful and will definitely have practical uses going forward for myself and my team.

Jessica L.

The resources and information shared today were invaluable and really useful and it was practical and engaging.

Steph H.

Inspiring, honest, helpful, informative.

Rhian J.

This is a really insightful training session, packed full of useful tips and resources and useful language.

Wendy C.

I was worried at first attending as I have no experience with suicide bereavement but didn't need to be. The session was delivered well and easy to understand.

Sally A.

Much needed, unique content on this subject matter of support to children who have lost a parent to suicide.

Serena S.

An informative and useful session, raised some good points for further consideration in own practice and supporting other professionals to support children and young people.

Helen B.

A very informative, educating, yet inspirational, workshop on such a sensitive topic.

Sarah S.

We use Coursecheck to collect feedback from everyone we train. For all our reviews, please see the Luna page on Coursecheck.

Luna Suicide Bereavement Training:

The lowdown

Maximum participants: 20
Duration: 3 hours
Method of delivery: online
CPD Accredited
Book you place on the next training session on Luna’s Eventbrite page
To commission training for your organisation, please contact Luna

Get in touch

If you have a question or you would like to speak with the team about training, please complete this form.

Proudly funded and supported by: