At a parliamentary drop-in event for MPs, we asked them to support a child funeral fund, to spare grieving parents the added trauma of funeral poverty.
Working with child cancer charity CLIC Sargent and Carolyn Harris MP, who has spoken widely on her personal experience of funeral poverty following the death of her son, we are calling for a central government fund to cover costs when a child dies. The scheme would cost £10million to cover child funerals costs right across the country.
MPs came to express their support and find out more about funeral poverty.
We explained the work we through our Down to Earth service, supporting people who can't afford a respectful funeral. We also explained that nationally, one in seven people who organised a funeral in the past four years admitted it caused them serious financial concern.
Applying for grants and shopping around funeral directors is incredibly difficult when you’re struggling with grief. Grieving parents are particularly vulnerable. The death of a child is something that parents are completely emotionally and financially unprepared for. All too frequently, the cost of a funeral imposes a crippling and unmanageable financial burden on bereaved parents, during what is an already impossible time.
We spoke to 24 MPs from the Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrat and Scottish National Parties.
Now we will be writing to Philip Hammond, the chancellor of the exchequer calling for a child funeral fund. All the MPs who came today will be encouraged to sign the letter and send a copy personally to the chancellor.
Let the chancellor know your view that we need a child funeral fund so grieving parents don't face funeral poverty. Tweet using the hashtag #ChildFuneralFund