MuchLoved Grant stories
Learn more about the organisations that the MuchLoved Charitable Trust has supported through our grants scheme, and the projects we have funded.
Aching Arms
Aching Arms has received a grant from MuchLoved Charitable Trust to fund memory bears for families affected by baby loss.
Aching Arms supports bereaved families following the loss of a baby during pregnancy, at birth or soon after. Its comfort bears offer something tangible to hold when parents’ arms are aching, and each bear is given with compassion and understanding.
The grant will help provide memory bears to families at an unimaginably difficult time, offering comfort, recognition and a gentle reminder that their baby is remembered. The project reflects MuchLoved’s commitment to remembrance and bereavement support.
Bath Funeral Directors
Bath Funeral Directors is helping local bereaved families find connection and support through a new series of “Let’s Talk” coffee mornings, funded by MuchLoved Charitable Trust.
The sessions are designed to offer a relaxed, welcoming space where people who have experienced a bereavement can come together, talk openly if they wish, and find comfort in the company of others who understand. For some, that may mean sharing memories and experiences; for others, it may simply mean having somewhere friendly to go at a difficult time.
By combining practical bereavement resources with face-to-face community care, the project shows how funeral directors can play a meaningful role in supporting families long after the service.
The Compassionate Friends
The Compassionate Friends is a national charity supporting bereaved parents and adult siblings after the death of a child, of any age (from one month old into adulthood) and from any cause.
Run by bereaved parents for bereaved parents, the charity offers a national helpline available 365 days a year, local and online support groups, one-to-one support, retreats and a wide range of bereavement publications.
Through compassionate, peer-led support and accessible resources, The Compassionate Friends helps families navigate grief, find understanding and connect with others who truly understand their loss.
creating conversations
MuchLoved Charitable Trust is proud to support Creating Conversations, a Community Interest Company dedicated to transforming how we talk about death, dying and grief.
Through this grant, four Grief Awareness Talks will be delivered across Waltham Forest, creating safe and welcoming spaces for open, honest conversation. These sessions help reduce isolation, build understanding around grief and equip people with the confidence and tools to talk about what matters most.
Together, we are helping to build more compassionate, connected communities.
Death: a Changing Industry Podcast
Death: A Changing Industry is a heartfelt podcast that opens up transformative conversations around grief, death, and the love that lives on. Each episode welcomes extraordinary as well as ordinary people to share their stories of loss, grief, and resilience. From deeply personal experiences to insights from those who are in contact with death, dying, and bereavement every day, the podcast inspires and comforts with stories of bereavement and saying goodbye, making it a source of educational content which we are proud to support.
Don’t tell the children
by John Adams with Clare Shaw
Don’t Tell the Children is a compassionate and practical guide for families navigating the difficult topics of death, dying and bereavement. Co-authored by John Adams and Clare Shaw, it offers real life stories and thoughtful strategies for talking about death with children as well as adults. The book helps families feel less alone and more equipped to face difficult conversations and loss together.
The book is part of a wider movement to bring bereavement education into everyday conversations and into schools to improve the support outcomes of bereaved children and young people.
‘Don’t Tell the Children’ presents advice and guidance for families following a bereavement, as well as tackling the taboo around discussing death and grief. We are proud to have supported this important resource, copies of which can be purchased from well-supplied bookstores. We have a small number of copies available which may be requested from our support team on support@muchloved.com, or you can find the book on Amazon or other online retailers.
Friends Together
Friends Together was established in 2007 as a group for bereaved people who meet for coffee mornings, lunch or activities. The group has since grown into a place where bereaved people across Kent have a chance to connect, share and heal in the company of others who truly understand.
Guided by specialists and rooted in peer support, Friends Together combats the loneliness and isolation so often experienced after a bereavement. The group was established and is also supported by Abbey Funerals. Every bereaved family in their care is made aware of the support available to them from Friends Together, ensuring that no one has to navigate grief alone.
The James Foundation
The James Foundation has received a grant from MuchLoved Charitable Trust to support a memorial tree at Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow.
The James Foundation raises awareness and improves support for parents and families affected by baby loss following miscarriage, stillbirth and neonatal death. Its vision is for every grieving parent to feel held, supported and understood, and for every baby’s life, however short, to be acknowledged, remembered and cherished.
The memorial tree will create a lasting place of remembrance within the hospital community, offering families a peaceful symbol of love, memory and connection after baby loss.
Jewish Bereavement Counselling Service
The Jewish Bereavement Counselling Service (JBCS) offers confidential counselling to individuals, couples, children and families in the Jewish community who are experiencing loss. Its work supports people at different stages of grief, helping them navigate bereavement with care, sensitivity and understanding.
JBCS used the grant from MuchLoved Charitable Trust to extend access to counselling to people who would otherwise be unable to afford it, ensuring that support is available when it is most needed. The funding also allows JBCS to respond more quickly to new referrals, tailor sessions to individual needs, and ensure that people experiencing loss can access timely, compassionate care.
Let’s Discuss Death
Let’s Discuss Death CIC has received funding from MuchLoved Charitable Trust to deliver grief support training for library staff, helping them feel more confident when supporting members of the public affected by bereavement.
Libraries are trusted, accessible community spaces, often used by people seeking information, connection or quiet support at difficult times. This project recognises the important role library staff can play in signposting, listening and responding with compassion when conversations about death and grief arise.
The initiative reflects MuchLoved Charitable Trust’s commitment to improving grief literacy and enabling more open, informed conversations about bereavement across everyday community settings.
living on
Living On is a children’s bereavement charity based in Orpington, Kent, supporting children, young people and their families following the death of someone they love.
Each year, the organisation works with around 200 individuals, providing personalised, trauma-informed support tailored to each child’s needs.
Services include one-to-one sessions, creative therapeutic groups, family drop-ins and partnership work with local schools to create grief-aware environments.
Through its compassionate, specialist approach, Living On helps children process complex emotions, reduce isolation and build resilience, ensuring that no child has to grieve alone.
The Loss Foundation
The Loss Foundation has received funding from MuchLoved to produce a co-branded bereavement support guide for cancer charity staff and volunteers.
The practical PDF guide will be developed by The Loss Foundation’s clinical team and led by Founder and Director Dr Erin Hope Thompson MBE. It will equip frontline staff with clear, accessible tools to support people grieving after a cancer loss.
By combining clinical expertise, lived experience and practical guidance, the project will help build confidence among professionals and volunteers, strengthen early bereavement support, and extend high-quality grief resources across the cancer charity sector.
mosaic
Mosaic is a Dorset-based charity supporting bereaved children and young people following the death of someone special in their lives.
Founded in 2007 to address gaps in local bereavement provision, Mosaic provides specialist, child-centred support to those affected by all causes of death, including sudden loss, long-term illness, suicide and accidents.
Working collaboratively with families, schools and other agencies, Mosaic creates a clear pathway of support before, during and after bereavement, helping children and young people process grief, feel understood and build resilience.
The Never Alone Project
The Never Alone Project is a bereavement charity based in Northamptonshire dedicated to supporting children, young people, families and communities as they navigate grief.
The charity offers tailored pre-bereavement guidance, one-to-one support, mentoring, group activities and resources designed to help individuals understand and express emotions around loss.
By creating safe, compassionate spaces and connecting people with others facing similar experiences, The Never Alone Project helps reduce isolation and build resilience throughout the bereavement journey. Its work ensures that no one has to face grief alone.
Roséo Essence
Roséo Essence CIC supports individuals and families affected by baby loss, miscarriage, stillbirth, and neonatal death, with a particular focus on Black and minoritized communities who are often underrepresented in bereavement and mental health services.
Roséo Essence CIC honours babies gone too soon and holds space for grief and healing through self care products, grief journals and baby loss greeting cards and community engagement.
We are pleased to support Roseo Essence CIC with a grant to help expand their reach and impact. By enabling attendance at key events and conferences, this funding supports continued network development, an invaluable step in strengthening partnerships and creating meaningful community change.
Sibling Support
Sibling Support has received a grant from MuchLoved Charitable Trust to support marketing for its Bereaved Sibling Young Ambassadors Forum.
The forum brings bereaved siblings together in age-appropriate groups, giving children and young people a space to meet and share their experiences and help shape the future of sibling bereavement support. The project recognises that brothers and sisters can sometimes feel overlooked in grief, particularly when a family is coping with the death of a child.
The grant will help Sibling Support reach more families and professionals, ensuring bereaved siblings feel seen, heard and supported.
This was Them
This Was Them deliver free memory-making workshops for parents and guardians supporting a bereaved child or young person. Sessions help families preserve memories of a loved one where a child may have few memories of their own.
When a child or young person loses someone they love, there is a real risk that the everyday details such as their voice and their personality are lost over time. This Was Them is known for creating bespoke memory books for bereaved children, developed through memories gathered from family, friends and colleagues. The new workshops build on this approach, giving parents the tools and confidence to gather and record memories themselves.
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