Get Support

Thank you for finding your way here. We know that this is a difficult time and hope that we can provide some helpful advice, information and support to you, your child or someone you care for.

Balloons Charity is here to support bereaved children and young people aged 5 – 25 who live in Exeter, East and Mid Devon, at all points of their grief journey. Please see below for a summary of what help we can provide at whatever stage you are at.

When someone is dying

If you or a child needs support when a death is expected, you can contact us on 01392 982570 or support@balloonscharity.co.uk.

Our specialist staff team will speak with you to understand your situation and can offer advice, information and resources around how to talk to children about bereavement, and ways you can support them. We can also send care packages with items to support a child or young person or just be a listening ear. If Balloons is not the right service for your child, or we are aware of other helpful services we will signpost you to these aswell.

In the lead up to a bereavement we are also able to offer one-to-one or small group support, provided by our volunteer Grief Support Workers. In general children have 1 or 2 sessions, but we work on a case-by-case basis – timescales, and the nature of the support, is tailored to each case – there is not a waiting list for this support.

When someone has just died

If you or a child needs support in the first 12 weeks following a bereavement, you can contact us on 01392 982570 or support@balloonscharity.co.uk.

If you or a child needs support in the first 12 weeks following a bereavement, you can contact us on 01392 982570 or support@balloonscharity.co.uk. Our specialist staff team will speak with you to understand your situation and can offer advice, information and resources around how to talk to children about the bereavement, and ways you can support them. We can also send care packages with items to support a child or young person or just be a listening ear. If Balloons is not the right service for your child, or we are aware of other helpful services we will signpost you to these aswell.

After someone has died

If you or a child needs support following a bereavement, you can contact us on 01392 982570 or support@balloonscharity.co.uk.

Our specialist staff team will speak with you to understand your situation and can offer advice, information and resources around how to talk to children about the bereavement, and ways you can support them. We can also send care packages with items to support a child or young person or just be a listening ear. If Balloons is not the right service for your child, or we are aware of other helpful services we will signpost you to these aswell.

There is no deadline to this – some people call in the first few months after a bereavement, and others get in touch years after the bereavement, we are always happy to have a conversation at any point.

We are also able to offer one-to-one or small group support, provided by our volunteer Grief Support Workers. To ensure our support is as helpful as possible, we take referrals for post-bereavement support at least 12 weeks after a bereavement, this is because the initial period can be overwhelming, making it hard to process feelings and benefit from formal support. In general children have 4 to 6 sessions, but we work on a case-by-case basis and the nature of the support, is tailored to each case.

Longer term support

Our door is open – after formal grief support sessions have finished; we still welcome ongoing contact with Balloons. You are always free to contact our staff team for advice.

Children and young people can also be re-referred for further one-to-one sessions, or small group support at a later stage (at least one year after their sessions ended).

All young people that have received post-bereavement support from us will be invited to our activity days for a period of 2 years after their support sessions have ended. These events are about having some fun and making connections with other bereaved young people.

Read more about Advice, Information, Care Packages and Resources
Read more about Activity Days

Balloons Catchment Area

Please see an overview of our Catchement Area below, or you can click here to view on Google Maps.