Cruse Bedfordshire exists to promote the well-being of bereaved people and to enable anyone suffering a bereavement to understand their grief and cope with their loss. We do this by providing high quality bereavement support, information and advice. Bereavement support is provided by a team of trained volunteers and is currently available as a home visiting service across the county of Bedfordshire. The service is free, confidential and open to anyone over the age of 18. Our policy is to treat each bereaved person as an individual with their own needs and to offer the support that is appropriate to them at this particular time in their life.
Cruse offer a preventative service, reducing future mental health issues and maximising wellbeing. Our service contributes to healthier and more active communities by reducing long term mental health problems, reliance of medication, drugs and alcohol. We achieve this by tackling the problems and concerns clients have following a bereavement when the feelings of anger, guilt, fear, mental health concerns and low self-esteem are very common. Clients learn to understand the various stages and implications of their grief and mechanisms for coping. The support enables clients to understand and cope with the physical and emotional aspects of bereavement and to resume a healthy, albeit changed lifestyle, with confidence. For some this means the ability to go out of their homes and meet and make friends or return to work. Clients are empowered to take responsibility for their well-being and become confident and more able to re-engage fully with family and community life.
