Grief campaigner 'delighted' lessons are to start

A man who has campaigned for grieving education to become part of the national school curriculum is "delighted" lessons are to begin this academic year.

John Adams, a funeral director from Bridgnorth, Shropshire, who lost his mother when he was 12, has been talking about the need to teach children about grief since 2022.

Last year, the Department for Education published statutory guidance that said lessons on loss, grieving and bereavement should take place in primary and secondary schools from this month.

"I am delighted and overwhelmed to see it finally happen," Adams said.

"[It] started out as a very difficult challenge, which I think is still the biggest taboo."

Adams said it had been great "to communicate with parliament, stakeholders, teachers, communities across the country to see how important this is and how it will help these young people".

The guidance states that by the end of primary school, pupils should be taught that change, loss and bereavement can provoke a range of feelings, that grief is a natural response to bereavement, and that everyone grieves differently.

By the end of secondary school, it adds, they should be taught how families and relationships change over time, including through birth, death, separation and new relationships.

After finding communication around death and grieving in schools was "non-existent", Adams began his campaign.

In October 2022 he launched a petition, which got more than 11,000 signatures and was then debated in parliament in December 2024.

Looking back at his mother's death, Adams explained how people had wanted to support him but "there was lots of silence".

"If we can just put some simple tools in place, then actually it's going to be a much kinder more connected world for us all to live in," he added.

Adams told BBC Radio Shropshire friends often wanted to support those who were grieving but were not sure what to say, leading to further detachment and separation.

He said he had known of bereaved people who had seen their friends cross the road to avoid them.

"They're actually going through so much more than just bereavement, they're also struggling because their friends... aren't there for them," he said.

"It's just basic communication."

Adams added grief wasn't just limited to death and dying and could also be through other things like changes in family circumstances, such as the forming of new relationships or parents being made redundant.

"Grief is in separate forms and that's really important to make people aware as well," he said.

"Simple acts of kindness can go such a long way for us all."

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