Windmills - Preparing Youngsters For The Death Of A Loved One

Who we are

Windmills is a unique, community-led, voluntary-sector organisation dedicated to supporting young people who are experiencing the anticipated loss of a loved one. We provide free, pre-bereavement support through 1:1 sessions, group activities, and therapeutic interventions, helping youngsters navigate, anticipated grief in a safe environment. Both co-founders/Specialist Practitioners for Acute Bereavement- Zara and Leeanne, are registered nurses with over 20 years’ experience each, trained in advance communication, holistic End of Life support and Breaking Bad News. They have also experienced the death of a loved one as a young child, enabling an empathetic perspective and allowing a truly bespoke package of support.  

Our culture and values

We support youngsters to have a voice when they can be actively isolated, when understandably, the adults around them are unable to speak such upsetting words. We help them to be present in the moments with their loved one, so that they dont hold any regrets, nurturing memories and/or learning new things, which the youngster can be proud of and pass on, through future generations. We unite families, through open communication and sharing of information, which promotes an empathic view of each family member as an individual, whilst also bringing them together, highlighting their love and support for one another, during a time of fear and uncertainty. We do all this and so much more, in a fun and unassuming way, because we have been the kids, who, unfortunately, have experienced the death of a loved one and now have the passion, ability and skill to prepare other youngsters with knowledge, trust and honesty, all whilst having fun and feeling safe.  

Windmills nurses will often be the first ones to share with a child the news about the death, or its imminence of a loved-one. Our specialist acute bereavement nurses provide caring, empathetic and expert support to each child through talking, by being there, by confronting the situation and sharing and working with each child through creative sessions, visits and memory making activities designed to help guide them 

through all the confusion and emotions that news of a loved-ones terminal diagnosis and death will inevitably bring.  

We openly discuss death to aid understanding, promote exploration of death as a concept and normalise common emotions as it is experienced very individually, based on multiple factors such as culture, religion, prior experience, fear and uncertainty, to name but a few. As practicing registered nurses, we are able to assist with explaining a diagnosis or other medical terminology which may cloud understanding. This is fundamental going forward for our young people who will, due to age, educational needs, emotional intelligence - amongst other factors -struggle with the permanency of death. 

Memory making is a key part of what we do during the first few sessions with our families - when someone dies, we all worry that we will lose our memories of our loved one - this is no different for a young person. By gathering and saving special memories they can go back and reconnect with those memories - happy or sad - when they are ready. 

Equality, diversity and inclusion policy