Support in Sefton

This tragic fire at Stone Square was truly shocking and we know people may be affected by what has happened.

You can find details of support across a range of different topics below.

1. Bereavement Support

Bereavement

Child Death Helpline offer support to anyone affected by the death of a child of any age, from pre-birth to adult, under any circumstances, whether recently or long ago. It provides an opportunity to talk in confidence to someone who has also experienced the death of a child. Free Phone 0800 282 986

The Alder Centre provides bereavement care through counselling, group activities and other complimentary therapies for parents and families Located at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital 0151 252 5391

2. Mental Health Support

You can find a snapshot of Adult Mental Health Support in Sefton - including links and contact details for the organisations involved - here.

Sefton in Mind

If you have been affected – directly or indirectly - by the tragic fire at Stone Square , you can find a range of support at www.seftoninmind.org.uk.

The Sefton In Mind pages on mental health support provide information on how to access to a wide range of services in Sefton, including Crisis Support, Specialist Services including bereavement, Support for Men, Support for Women and Someone to Speak to.

Use this link to visit Sefton in Mind.

Talking Therapies

Psychological treatments, sometimes called talking therapy are available to help people with common mental health problems such as feeling stressed, feeling low in mood (depressed) or very nervous (anxiety).

Referrals to NHS Talking Therapies is different in each area.

In Sefton, you can contact Mental Health Matters.

You can use the links below to find support if you live in these areas:

If you live outside of these areas, you can visit www.nhs.uk/talk.

Young People

Soluna by Kooth

Soluna by Kooth is an online chat-based mental health support service for young people between the ages of 10 and 25.

They offer free, safe and anonymous support through 1-to-1 chats with mental health professionals and via moderated forums and articles.

Kooth is available 24/7 with the 1 to 1 chat feature operating between the hours of 12noon and 10pm on weekdays and from 6pm to 10pm during weekends.

You can find more about Soluna by Kooth here.

Alder Hey Crisis Care Service

Alder Hey Crisis Care Service offers 24-hour support to children and young people who are in mental health crisis.

If you or someone you care for in Sefton or Liverpool is under 18 and having a mental health crisis call:

CAMHS Crisis Care Line: 0151 293 3577
Freephone CAMHS Crisis Care Line number: 0808 196 35

ChatHealth

ChatHealth is a confidential service that provides health and wellbeing advice via text message.

Young people aged 11-19 years can gain advice on health and wellbeing from a School Nurse via a text messaging service ChatHealth. You can remain anonymous if they wish.

The number for ChatHealth Sefton is 07312 263291.

Samaritans

Samaritans is a charity that provides support and listening to people in the UK and Ireland who are struggling to cope. They are available 24/7, 365 days a year – if you need someone to talk to, call 116 123.

https://www.samaritans.org/how-we-can-help/contact-samaritan/

3. Psychological support following the incident

After a distressing or frightening event: Information for those affected

After experiencing a distressing event, it is normal to notice a range of reactions.

These reactions are part of a natural process of making sense of events after something difficult has happened. Not everyone experiences this, but a great many people do.

Professional psychological treatment is not usually needed or recommended in this early stage.

When more help is needed

When you have been involved in a traumatic situation it is common to feel scared and upset for a period of time afterwards.

Everybody reacts in different ways, there is no right way to think and feel. These responses usually settle down after a while, but it can take time and people often have good days and bad days. Most people will notice the impacts of the event gradually normalising over the first month.

If, a month or more after the event, you are still distressed by the signs and symptoms below then it might be worth thinking about getting some psychological support.

Feeling upset and fearful
Finding it difficult to stop thinking about the incident
Having nightmares
Feeling more irritable
Feeling more jumpy
Struggling to work or look after your home and family
Starting to have relationship difficulties
Using drugs or drinking alcohol more than usual
Acting very differently to before the trauma
Struggling to enjoy life
Feeling emotionally

There is a wide range of psychological support available, from basic distress management to more in-depth trauma therapy. These types of psychological support are also offered in a variety of formats including courses, face to face in person or virtually via video platform or online via internet enabled therapy.

If you would like some psychological support your local NHS Talking Therapies Service (Formerly known as Increasing Access to Psychological Therapies) will be able to help and there may be other services in your local area. You can self-refer to some or you could ask your GP to refer you.

You can use this link to find details of your local NHS Talking Therapies Service.

When should I seek more help?

If at any time you are feeling unable to keep yourself safe, please contact crisis services on one of the numbers below:

Urgent care or crisis freephone support:

NHS 111 (Option 2)

Use this link to find the easy read version of NHS guidance on coping with stress following a major incident.

4. Advice for parents