A WIDNES branch of a childhood bereavement charity has received a donation of £1,500 thanks to local Tesco shoppers.

Child Bereavement UK supports families through childhood grief or child bereavement.

The charity applied to Tesco’s Stronger Start scheme, which awards funds to charities and community organisations to help make a positive difference in the lives of children and young people.

The charity’s application was successful, and the donation will be used to fund monthly face-to-face support sessions for grieving young people.

Sebastian Farrell, senior community fundraiser at Child Bereavement UK, said: “The aim of this project is to support 11 to 18-year-olds bereaved of someone important to them.

“We’d like to thank Tesco for this donation. Our face-to-face support sessions and monthly groups for young people can help children feel less alone in their grief. The interactive sessions provide an outlet to talk about feelings, and just being around other children in a similar position can be helpful and supportive.”

This year marks Child Bereavement UK’s 30th anniversary of supporting bereaved children, young people, parents and families.

Claire De Silva, Head of Community at Tesco, said: “We’re delighted that we can help local community groups such as Child Bereavement UK which really make a difference in our community. Tesco Stronger Starts invites our customers to vote using their blue token for local schemes that they feel are important to help our communities thrive, and it’s great to see the impact that the funding makes.”

To find out more about Child Bereavement UK, visit https://www.childbereavementuk.org/

For further information about the work that Tesco does in communities, go to https://www.tescoplc.com/sustainability/communities/community-champions/