BBC Children in Need has awarded grants totalling £161,102 to two local projects in Bromsgrove and Redditch working with disadvantaged children and young people.
The Primrose Hospice has been awarded £77,170 to provide support over three years for children who have experienced a bereavement in their close friends or family.
The project will support the young people to develop coping mechanisms to deal with distressing feelings and improve their relationships with family and friends for the future.
Rachel Shepherd, trusts and grants fundraiser at Primrose Hospice, said: “Many of the children we support haven’t experienced bereavement and so their feelings can be strange for them.
“They may not have friends who have been through similar experiences and so they can feel very isolated.
“To be able to meet other children in the same situation, and know that they are not alone, and have support, is invaluable as they move through an incredibly difficult time. A huge thank you to BBC Children in Need for their support.”
Meanwhile Home-Start North East Worcestershire has been allocated a three-year grant of £83,932 to deliver family support to disadvantaged children affected by poverty and deprivation.
Manager Karen Jones said: “A huge thank you to everyone at BBC Children in Need for their support, this funding really will make an enormous difference to young lives.
“Our volunteers understand the pressures and struggles that children and their parents face, as they are parents themselves.
“They work alongside the family, in their own home, where the children should feel safe and secure. Sometimes the volunteer is the only constant in a child’s life, and the children begin to look forward to their volunteer coming.
“Children are given the opportunity to express what they want from their volunteer and the volunteers often provide them with opportunities to take part in activities in the community, socialise and make new friends. Just the opportunity to be a child.”
Across Worcestershire, BBC Children in Need is currently funding 14 projects to a value of £950,000.
