March - Cruse Bereavement Care

Cruse was founded in Richmond on Thames in 1959 by Margaret Torrie, a social worker, and the wife of a consultant psychiatrist. She realised that there was no service that provided help to grieving widows, and she advertised in the local newspaper to test out the possibility of setting up a group. Nearly thirty widows turned up at the first meeting and the service grew from there, altering its outreach in 1987 to include all those going through a period of grief.

Cruse Bereavement Care is now the largest charity of its kind in the world. There are branches in all regions of England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and there is a similar but autonomous organisation in Scotland.
The name of the charity comes from an archaic word for an earthenware jar.  The ‘cruse’ refers to the story in 1 Kings chapter 17 which tells of the widow who used her last oil and flour to feed Elijah, and from then on found that her jar (cruse) was always full. Cruse has no political or religious affiliations and provides practical advice and counselling through trained volunteers.

Services and support are available for anyone trying to come to terms with bereavement, with special emphasis on children, Service families, suicide and victims of crime. They also help following major incidents.
As well as training their own volunteers Cruse gives training to external organisations and individuals who may encounter bereavement in the normal course of their work.

Apart from a small central staff in Richmond the service relies entirely on volunteers and generates no funds of its own. Nobody who needs help is turned away for financial reasons, and clients make a contribution that they can afford. Support sessions can take place in an individual’s home, a Cruse office or by telephone or via email.

Local support groups meet on Tuesday mornings in Cheltenham, and Friday mornings in Gloucester.
Friendship groups meet on those same days.

Cruse websites are very ‘user friendly’ for both a grieving person and someone wanting to help them.
For young people between 12 and 18 (approximately) there is a specific website and freephone helpline:

www.rd4u.org.uk
( 0808 808 1677

National contacts:
www.cruse.org.uk
( 0208 939 9530

Local contacts:
gloucestershire@cruse.org.uk
( 01242 252518