While staying with us, the children have opportunities to do things that they would not be able to do at home. This can be everyday activities that are too difficult to do at home, such as taking a bath or playing with other children. They can also enjoy swimming in our Therapy Pool, playing and listening to music or enjoying therapeutic animal visits – most recently from two penguins, Pringle and Charlie!

For children who are unwell or who have disabilities, opportunities for play and fun can be overlooked as their clinical needs are often the focus, and time during the day can be limited. Our Play Specialist enables children to play and have new experiences, while adapting to each child's specific needs and interests. Setting and clearing up activities takes time that many families don't have.

This time is invaluable for families, as it gives them the chance to create new memories together and for mums and dads to enjoy just being a parent and having fun together. Other families come to us with newly diagnosed children and have been so focused on their care and coming to terms with their child's condition that they are sometimes nervous to try new things. We support them with this and show them activities and toys that are appropriate and how these can then be developed in the future.

Bereavement services for families

Our Family Support and Bereavement Team is here to offer support for parents, partners, siblings and the whole family. We provide support at our hospice, at home or in hospital, depending on what the family prefer. We put families' needs and wishes at the centre of the care they receive, providing both one-to-one and group support around the many issues of living with a terminally ill child and dealing with grief and loss, from diagnosis all the way through to bereavement.

Immy passed away at Helen & Douglas House from a brain tumour when she was 2 years old, having already lost her twin sister in the late stages of pregnancy. Her mum, Kathryn said, "Helen & Douglas House have been so supportive to us since Immy passed away. I have regular counselling to help me survive and get through the tough days. We also get to join a parents bereavement group which helps us to realise we are not alone, and we can talk to others who are feeling the same as us and just understand how we feel. Lester attends a regular dads' group which is a great way for him to talk to other dads who often find it hard to talk to counsellors. Without this support I am not sure we would have got through the first year on our own, there is nowhere else that offers this support and we would be totally lost without it."

Every year we organise a Remembrance Service, where we light candles to honour the precious little lives of the children we have cared for. The service provides time and space for families to remember their child and for bereaved families to come together. Unfortunately, once again this year we were unable to hold the service in person, but we held an incredibly moving virtual service which can be viewed here: youtu.be/Wcx3qYXqnZ8, and we sent accompanying Remembrance boxes to families. One of our bereaved parents fed back on the virtual service saying "Our son died nearly 4 months ago now and the pain has certainly not lessened, but we took comfort in the service and it was lovely to see the faces of staff we worked closely with during the hardest 6 weeks of our lives again. Thank you so much again to every member of the team who was involved in the making of the virtual remembrance service. Helen House is a very special place, filled with the most wonderful people."

In addition to the support this team provides families, they also support the rest of the clinical and care teams employed by Helen & Douglas House, providing de-briefs and counselling sessions to talk through and cope with the loss they face as part of their professional lives.

Thank you