A WIDOWER from Wychbold has written a book to help primary schools best support bereaved children whilst in their care.
Justin Bowen lost Helga – his wife and mum to their two children – to cancer in 2019.
He said: “They were just five and seven at the time. and, as difficult a time as it was, we were blessed with wonderful support from our village school, Wychbold First and Nursery School.
“It played a huge part in helping the children come through those most challenging of days.”
Around a year later his daughter Seren painted a poignant picture which inspired Justin to write ‘Be The Rainbow: A Practical Guide for Supporting Bereaved Children in Primary Schools’.
He said: “On the picture there were clouds and rain, lots of rain, but also a rainbow.
“She said the clouds and the rain were like the storm she sometimes felt inside.
“I asked her what the rainbow was, and she said it was all the things that made her feel better.
“Then I asked her what helped her feel better, and one of the things she said was school.”
Justin heard from other widowed parents that although many schools offered good support for their children, there were many that did not.
“For some children struggling with their grief, school became part of the problem.
“So, using my daughter’s painting as inspiration, I decided to try and do something to help.”
Justin worked with Wychbold First School and took advice from clinical and educational psychologists when creating the book.
It contains assessment, planning and support tools and activities, all specially designed to help teachers and professionals to ‘Be The Rainbow’ in the lives of bereaved children.
Justin added he hoped more primary schools in Worcestershire and beyond would have a copy of the book on their shelves so more children could be helped through the bereavement process.
“My children were very lucky to have the support available they did but others are not and what happens during this difficult period can have a massive impact on the rest of their lives.
“My ultimate aim in writing the book was to transform the way bereaved children were supported in primary schools, and to remove the inconsistencies which exist.
“Imagine if we had a national standard where every child in the country got all the support they needed – what an amazing legacy that would be.”
Justin also thanked Alison Key from Alison Key Creative who did all the design layout, making it bright and reader-friendly.
Although written from the experience of children bereaved of a parent, the book is suitable for professionals working with any primary school child who has experienced the death of someone important, whether that be a parent, sibling, grandparent, or friend.
Justin has received plenty of positive feedback from both psychologists and readers for the way it is presented.
Be The Rainbow: A Practical Guide for Supporting Bereaved Children in Primary Schools is available here from Amazon and a website to complement the book – betherainbow.co.uk – provides more information.
