A GRANDMOTHER has set up a group to help support parents dealing with bereavement following the death of her daughter.

Jane Pentling has formed a Bournemouth branch of The Compassionate Friends, which is a nationwide group for parents who have lost a son or daughter at any age, from any cause. It also provides support for grandparents and siblings.

Jane’s daughter, Ann, passed away almost four years ago at the age of just 44.

Jane said: “She had tonsillitis and it wouldn’t go away, she went to the doctors and they gave her a blood test and found she had leukaemia.”

Ann was given more than a 90 per cent chance of survival and had just started chemotherapy but it was discovered she had developed septicaemia.

“It happened so quickly. It was a terrible terrible shock.”

“I think about my daughter every day.”

Following the loss of her daughter, Jane attended a support group for bereaved parents in Southampton once a month as there wasn’t a group in the Bournemouth area at the time.

With the help and backing of the main organisation in London, she decided to start a group in Bournemouth.

The Compassionate Friends started in Coventry in 1969 and groups have now been set up all over the UK and across the globe.

The Bournemouth group meets once a month and Jane will get together with people on a one-to-one basis before offering them the chance to join the group.

“Everybody has a different story to tell.”

“I’ve had people who have been bereaved by suicide.”

“It doesn’t matter if you’ve lost a stillborn baby or someone in their 50s, it’s still a loss.”

“Someone who comes to the group is 30 years bereaved. You can all help each other in different ways.”

Anyone interested in joining the group can contact Jane on 01202 513180.