Children and bereavement

Every 22 minutes, the mother or father of someone under 16 dies, which means that:

• approximately two children and young people under 16 are bereaved of a parent every hour of every day in the UK
• around 53 children and young people are bereaved of a mother or father every day
• over 24,000 children and young people are bereaved of a parent each year in Britain
• 4% of 5 to 16 year-olds have experienced the death of a parent or sibling; this equates to 358,300 young people in the UK.
• 6% of 5 to 16 year-olds have experienced the death of a close friend of the family; this equates to 537,450 children in the UK.
• 13% of 5 to 16 year-olds have experienced the death of a grandparent; this equates to 1,105,000 children in the UK.

Sources:

Wilson, R, (British Medical Journal 1999)
Office for National Statistics; population at mid-2000
Meltzer, H, et al, "The Mental Health of Children and Adolescents in Great Britain", ONS, 1999.

Copyright Winston's Wish - Please refer to us when using these statistics.