Lancashire Mind to deliver Community Bereavement Support Service

Blackburn with Darwen Council has awarded a £67,500-per-year contract for a community bereavement support service to support children, young people and families.

The contract has been handed to Lancashire Mind until June 30,2029, with an option to extend until June 2031.

But the council has decided not to award a similar contract for a Community Bereavement Support Service for adults as it could not find a provider that met its requirements.

A report to councillors by director of public health Abdul Razaq says: “How we respond to those who are bereaved can have a long-term impact on how they grieve, their health and their memories of the individual who has died.

“Bereavement can result in clinical depression, anxiety states, panic syndromes, and post-traumatic stress disorder and is associated with increased risk of mortality, greater use of health services, and subsequent poor mental and physical health.

“Bereavement can also trigger loneliness and increased social isolation.

“Bereavement also brings life changes and practical challenges.

“A Blackburn with Darwen Health Watch survey on bereavement in 2024 – with over 600 respondents – found that most people did not know where to access bereavement support.

“People felt that there was little information about what services are currently available.

“Overall, the feeling from residents was that the current provision in the borough was not sufficient.

“National research found that almost all children experience some kind of bereavement by the age of sixteen.

“The effects of grief on children can be extensive.

“It can influence how children behave, their concentration, relationships, and how they feel about themselves and the world around them.

“Studies show that children who lose a parent or close relative are at higher risk of depression, anxiety, and social or educational difficulties later in life.

“Where bereavement is sudden or traumatic, such as through suicide or accident, this risk is even higher.

“In April 2025, the executive board approved the procurement of a Community Bereavement Support Service.

“Following an extensive procurement process over the summer of 2025, a panel was unable to award the community bereavement contract.

“The result was to split the original contract into two lots that would separate adults from an offer for children and families.

“The two revised services were put out to tender between January and early March this year.

“A multi-agency panel evaluated the submissions and agreed that the contract for a children, young people and families service could be awarded but the applications to deliver a service for adults still did not demonstrate the required level of quality.”