When we started our charity I don't think any of us actually realised how big it would become, and how quickly it could happen. 2016 is certainly turning out to be THE year for Charlies Angel Centre.

Whilst we will always have our focus on this we will also continue with our Charlie Bear site, supporting children who have been affected by a death.

We know from our own personal experience how difficult it can be for children to cope with a death.

Adults sometimes try to protect children from pain by not telling them what has happened. 

We on the other hand were open with Charlies young cousins about what had happened. 

Experts are now saying that children can benefit from knowing the truth at an early stage. The closer the relationship, the more important it is to be open and honest.

Adults can also help children to cope by listening to the child's experience of death and answering their questions, reassuring them. 

Children often worry that they will be abandoned by loved ones as they deal with their own grief.

If they can talk about the event and express themselves they can often cope better and are less likely to have emotional disturbances later on in their lives.

When a child is only young when they experience a death they can become upset that they are not able to remember what the person looked like so having a photograph of them can be a great source of comfort.

Children often find it helpful to be included in family activities, such as attending the funeral, although a great deal of thought needs to be given as to how to support them and prepare them for this. If a child is frightened to attend a funeral they should not be forced to attend as this could make their experience more traumatic.

You can always find other ways for the child to be able to say their goodbye's, lighting a candle or releasing a balloon, which will leave much more happy memories for them.

Once a child has accepted the death they are likely to display their feelings of sadness, anger and anxiety on and off over a long period of time and often at unexpected moments.

As long as the child is given lots of support and understanding that it is ok for them to show their feelings about the death without worrying about upsetting others then they can feel safe in their grief.

We found that Charlies cousins benefited from having a teddy bear that they named Charlie Bear. 

They would talk to him and take him out with them when they went to the park or on holidays. It really helped them being able to tell the bear how they were feeling.

Watching them gave us the idea that other children would benefit from having their own teddy bear to talk to. This is how Charlie Bears Adventures evolved. 

We now send out free Charlie Bear packs to children who have experienced a death, to give them comfort and support. They also receive a certificate of adoption, colouring pages and lots of other things. 

There is also Charlie Bears website that they can go to which is packed with things to see and do. www.charliebearsadventures.co.uk

If you know a child that could really benefit from getting one of our packs please get in touch.