Almost half of the 900 nursery practitioners surveyed by the centre at the end of 2020 said that they had worked with children who have experienced the bereavement of a parent or sibling. And many admitted that they had found the children’s needs difficult to manage and wanted more access to training. More than half (53 per cent) said they had not received any additional training, alongside their standard training, that related to early years mental health.
In response, the centre, which specialises in child mental health research, training and treatment, will be hosting a series of free webinars for early years staff, offering practical guidance on how to manage the needs of children in their care who have experienced bereavement and trauma.
Camilla Rosan, head of the early years programme at the Anna Freud Centre, said, ‘When we surveyed nursery staff last year, nearly half (48 percent) said they had worked with children who had experienced the bereavement of a parent or sibling. Our webinar will offer clear advice on how early years staff can support these children through such a difficult time in their lives.’
Speakers include Beck Ferrari, a child bereavement specialist and cognitive behavioural therapist who has worked as both a teacher and SENCO. She also ran a child bereavement service for Kent County Council for a number of years, where she developed a range of bereavement resources and training designed specifically for early years settings.
Claudia de Campos, a parent-infant psychotherapist from the Anna Freud Centre will also be speaking at the webinar, and offering information about how early years staff can support children in their setting who have been affected by a miscarriage or stillbirth.
On 24 June, the centre’s team will run another free webinar for early years staff, offering advice on supporting children who may have experienced trauma or abuse, after results from the survey found that 69 per cent of nursery staff said they had experienced working with babies or children affected by trauma or abuse.
More information
- Supporting bereaved children in early years settings takes place on 13 May, 4.30 - 6pm.
- Supporting children in early years settings who may have experienced trauma takes place on 24 June, 4.30 - 6pm.
