National Lottery Backs Groundbreaking Scottish Bereavement Service

Cruse Scotland, Scotland’s leading bereavement charity, has been awarded £181k over four years from the National Lottery Community Fund for an early bereavement support service for people affected by sudden and traumatic bereavement.

The funding will help ensure this specialist support is swiftly available to those who need it anywhere in Scotland, and when they need it most.

The service has been developed in partnership with Lewis Leap, a charity founded by Elizabeth and Ian Johnson following the tragic death of their 13-year-old son, Lewis, during a family holiday in 2019.

In the aftermath of Lewis’s death, the family identified a significant gap in providing early support in the first six months for people coping with sudden and traumatic loss. 

Determined to create lasting change in Lewis’s memory, they established Lewis Leap to fund specialist bereavement support across Scotland.

Over the past four years, Cruse Scotland and Lewis Leap have worked together, undertaking research and consulting with people affected by sudden and traumatic bereavement.

The findings from this work are now being put into action through the launch of the Lewis Leap Sudden and Traumatic Bereavement Support Service, named in Lewis Johnson’s memory and now forms part of Cruse Scotland’s core service offering.

The service provides vital early support within the first six months of a sudden and traumatic bereavement to children, young people and adults. It will also continue to develop, with plans to introduce dedicated whole family support.

Over the next four years, the service is expected to support around 360 bereaved individuals across Scotland. Lewis Leap will also contribute more than £85,000 towards delivery of the service.

Cruse Scotland Chief Executive Fiona Arnott-Barron said: “We are delighted to receive funding from the National Lottery Community Fund for this vital new service. Sudden and traumatic bereavement can have a devastating and long-lasting impact, yet access to specialist support has been inconsistent across Scotland.

“This funding means we can provide dedicated support to bereaved people anywhere in the country, ensuring that no one has to face this kind of grief alone. We have worked closely with Lewis Leap over the last four years to develop this much-needed service, and we are proud to help create a lasting legacy for Lewis that will support people across Scotland for years to come.”

Lewis’ mother, Elizabeth Johnson, said: “When Lewis died, our world changed forever.

“To discover that bereavement support was not available for at least the first six months left us feeling utterly cast adrift, isolated, and alone in the darkest of times.

“From that pain came a clear purpose. In 2019, we built a partnership with Cruse Scotland that could offer early bereavement support in the first six months following a loss, so that those who are grieving feel truly heard, cared for, and supported as they try to find their way through such a devastating time.

“We are deeply grateful to the National Lottery for supporting the Lewis Leap Sudden and Traumatic Bereavement Support Service, created in loving memory of our beautiful son, Lewis Johnson.”

To access the service, or to seek further information, please contact Cruse Scotland via any of the following:

Helpline:            0808 802 6161

Website:            crusescotland.org.uk 

Email:                 support@crusescotland.org.uk