WIREDGOV

A London support group that helps families as they try to cope with the loss of a child is among 143 projects in the capital sharing £1.2m of lottery funding today (TUESDAY). 

The SLOW Group, based in Islington, was set up in 2007 by two bereaved mothers who wanted to provide an opportunity for other parents, experiencing the same grief, to get together and offer mutual support and understanding.

Since then the group has grown to offer other services, such as art workshops for brothers and sisters who have lost a sibling and have their own needs that need to be addressed. Now SLOW has been awarded £9,944 from the Big Lottery Fund’s Awards for All programme so that they can start running evening groups, in addition to their current daytime workshops, to fit in better around people’s lives.

Nicola Whitworth was one of the mothers who co-founded the group and now works as its facilitator. She said: “Losing a child is a relatively rare event, but when it happens it has a devastating effect on family life. It is natural to struggle with grief, but its impact can trigger health problems, anxiety, alcohol or drug dependency and extreme stress in all family relationships. We support parents as they gradually make their way back into the world into other activities, opportunities, work and family life.

“people don't know what to say to bereaved parents”

“Many of the group's users say that they feel very socially isolated - people don't know what to say to bereaved parents, and they lose so much on top of the loss of their child. SLOW’s groups provide a unique service, a safe space where parents are encouraged to experience their own grief and share their experiences with the only people who really understand.”

One mother that has benefitted from SLOW’s support also gives an insight into how the group has helped her: “My daughter, died in 2010. It was a particularly traumatic death and the ensuing grief was, and still remains, all encompassing. Eighteen months after her death I found SLOW. Before I went to the group I felt I was in complete isolation -- it was a very dark and lonely time. I had had counsellors but they hadn't been through the death of a child, they didn't understand.

“At my first meeting I was amazed that a group like this existed just a short walk from my home. SLOW has been a lifeline for me, it is a place to go to talk about my child, to understand what I'm feeling isn't unique and that there are other parents who have 'survived' the death of their child. It gives me headspace to think about her each week and has helped me more than any of the numerous counselling sessions that I have attended.

“I've also met numerous parents through the group that I now meet outside of SLOW -- these people are becoming lifelong friends. Even though the pain of my losing my little girl is still there, I no longer feel isolated as I have SLOW.”

Other projects to receive a lottery lifeline today include, the Football for Peace, Hope and Unity project in Camden, which has been granted £9,984 to deliver a relationship building project using football as a medium for those who were displaced as a result of the Rwandan genocide.

In Lambeth, the Heart and Soul Counselling Centre is celebrating a £10,000 grant to support victims of domestic violence while the South London YMCA in Croydon has been awarded£4,085 to deliver a bicycle refurbishment project for homeless people and substance mis-users including workshops on repair, maintenance and road safety that will help teach new skills.

Lyn Cole, Big Lottery Fund Deputy Director for England, said: “These great projects in London demonstrate the life-changing impact that small amounts of Lottery funding can have and will continue to do so, long into the future.” 

A full list of Awards for All grants in London today, is available here

Big Lottery Fund Press Office:      020 7211 1888

Out of hours media contact:           07867 500572

Website:                                             www.biglotteryfund.org.uk

Twitter:                                              @biglotteryfund #BigLottery

Facebook:                                          www.facebook.com/BigLotteryFund

Notes to editors

• The Big Lottery Fund is responsible for giving out 40% of the money raised by the National Lottery.
• The Fund is committed to bringing real improvements to communities and the lives of people most in need and has been rolling out grants to health, education, environment and charitable causes across the UK. Since its inception in 2004 it has awarded close to £6bn.
• In the year ending 31 March 2013, 28% of total National Lottery revenue was awarded to projects. Since the National Lottery began in 1994, £31 billion has been raised and more than 400,000 grants awarded