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Supporting children with a life limiting/life threatening illness

Updated: 07/09/16

Issues vary depending on condition, life expectancy and whether children are in school

Children who have frequent visits or stays in hospital welcome being in school as part of their normal life

Sharing information and keeping children and parents up to date can really help

It is much better to talk honestly than deal with constant rumours

For some people it may be difficult to think about impending death, but preparing children and the whole school does help.

Please get in touch with the Critical Incident Lead Officer, Dr Bianca Finger-Berry, bianca.finger-berry@norfolk.gov.uk if you would like some advice or support.

We work in partnership with palliative services in Norfolk, and usually complement each other in what we can offer to schools/academies. Many families access support from EACH at Quidenham, please see their website for further information: https://www.each.org.uk/family-zone/quidenham-families

If you are working in a special school, you are likely to be supporting children and young people who are facing these difficulties on a regular basis. However, this can still be demanding and difficult at times, and the impact of this should not be underestimated. Support and advice is available to everyone, so please feel free to make contact if you would like support.

All LA and subscribing schools can also access whole staff training, which can be offered as a 2 hour session after school. There is no additional charge if you subscribe to the Critical Incident Service or are an LA school, and you are supporting a child who is expected to die.

Sometimes children with cancer and other illnesses also miss quite a bit of education. Please follow the NCC advice, further information can found in the September 2016 MI sheet.

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Macmillan Uk has produced some guidance for schools where young people have cancer.

Young people with cancer are often worried about how their friends and classmates will act towards them, especially if they have had a long time off school or return with obvious physical changes such as hair loss. Friends can offer a lot of support to a person with cancer and most peers accept any changes. But they may have questions so it’s a good idea to prepare for these and to consider possible answers.

Some people may ask the teacher to talk about cancer with the class. This should only happen if the young person with cancer agrees to it and they should know what their classmates have been told.

Giving classmates the facts about cancer will help them to understand and will give you the chance to address any misconceptions they may have, for example that you can catch cancer. You can find out more about talking to your class about cancer in our teaching pack.