Job summary
Are you passionate about supporting people through some of lifes most difficult moments? Swindon & Gloucestershire Mind is seeking a compassionate and resilient Suicide Bereavement Practitioner to join our dedicated team. This unique role offers the opportunity to make a real difference to individuals, families, and communities affected by suicide, providing timely, sensitive, and practical support when it is most needed.
As part of our team, youll be a steady presence for those navigating grief and trauma, offering reassurance, guidance, and connection to wider services. You will also be part of a collaborative network, working closely with NHS partners, coroners, schools, and local authorities to ensure a seamless community response to suicide bereavement.
We are committed to supporting your professional development through specialist training, regular supervision, and CPD opportunities. With flexible working arrangements, generous leave, and a culture that prioritises wellbeing, youll find both purpose and support in this role. If youre looking for meaningful work where your skills can bring hope and healing, wed love to hear from you.
Main duties of the job
As a Suicide Bereavement Practitioner, you will provide both emotional and practical support to people affected by suicide. This includes offering one-to-one sessions, facilitating supportive groups, and helping individuals navigate complex processes such as inquests, funeral planning, or liaising with workplaces and statutory agencies.
Youll play a key role in building personalised support plans, listening with empathy, and helping people develop strategies for coping and recovery. In addition, you will maintain regular contact to ensure continuity of care, respond sensitively to changes in need, and make timely referrals to specialist or crisis services where appropriate.
Beyond individual support, youll also contribute to community awareness by engaging with schools, local organisations, and statutory partners to strengthen the collective response to suicide. By combining direct care with partnership working, youll help create a network of compassion and resilience across Swindon and Wiltshire.
About us
Swindon & Gloucestershire Mind is an independent local mental health charity that has supported communities for over 25 years. Our mission is to ensure that every person is recognised, valued, and supported, and we work tirelessly to improve mental health, reduce inequalities, and deliver services that make a real difference.
Our values of selflessness, integrity, accountability, openness, honesty, objectivity, and leadership guide us every day. They shape how we support our staff and those who use our services, creating an environment of trust, respect, and compassion.
When you join us, youll be part of a team that is collaborative, resilient, and committed to wellbeing. Youll benefit from supervision, accredited CPD training, and ongoing personal development, while working in a culture that looks after its people.
We also offer flexible working, generous annual leave, and a portable pension scheme. Most importantly, youll be part of something biggerworking alongside NHS, statutory, and voluntary partners to help build stronger, more compassionate communities.
Job description
Job responsibilities
As a Suicide Bereavement Practitioner, you will provide timely, compassionate support to people, families, and communities affected by suicide. You will be a first point of reassurance, reaching out soon after referral to offer guidance and let people know they are not alone.
Working alongside individuals, you will carry out holistic assessments and co-create personalised support and safety plans that reflect their needs, hopes, and goals. You will provide one-to-one emotional support, create safe spaces for grief and reflection, and help people develop coping strategies and rebuild resilience at their own pace.
The role also involves offering practical guidancestanding beside people as they navigate processes such as funeral arrangements, inquests, or conversations with employers, police, or the media. You will facilitate group and peer support, both in person and online, helping reduce isolation and strengthen community connections.
You will remain attentive to changing needs, identifying and responding to risks, and making timely referrals to crisis or clinical services where necessary. By making warm referrals, you will ensure people are connected to wider sources of support such as talking therapies, housing advice, or trauma services.
Collaboration is central to this role: you will work closely with coroners, police, NHS trusts, schools, funeral directors, and local authorities to build a seamless network of care. You will also play a part in raising awareness of suicide bereavement support in communities and partner organisations, ensuring that people know help is available.
Finally, you will contribute to service learning and improvement through accurate record-keeping, outcome monitoring, and sharing insights that shape future care.
This is a role that makes a real difference. By providing compassionate, person-centred support, you will not only help individuals through their grief but also strengthen the wider community response to suicidehelping to create a place where people are recognised, valued, and supported.
Job description
Job responsibilities
As a Suicide Bereavement Practitioner, you will provide timely, compassionate support to people, families, and communities affected by suicide. You will be a first point of reassurance, reaching out soon after referral to offer guidance and let people know they are not alone.
Working alongside individuals, you will carry out holistic assessments and co-create personalised support and safety plans that reflect their needs, hopes, and goals. You will provide one-to-one emotional support, create safe spaces for grief and reflection, and help people develop coping strategies and rebuild resilience at their own pace.
The role also involves offering practical guidancestanding beside people as they navigate processes such as funeral arrangements, inquests, or conversations with employers, police, or the media. You will facilitate group and peer support, both in person and online, helping reduce isolation and strengthen community connections.
You will remain attentive to changing needs, identifying and responding to risks, and making timely referrals to crisis or clinical services where necessary. By making warm referrals, you will ensure people are connected to wider sources of support such as talking therapies, housing advice, or trauma services.
Collaboration is central to this role: you will work closely with coroners, police, NHS trusts, schools, funeral directors, and local authorities to build a seamless network of care. You will also play a part in raising awareness of suicide bereavement support in communities and partner organisations, ensuring that people know help is available.
Finally, you will contribute to service learning and improvement through accurate record-keeping, outcome monitoring, and sharing insights that shape future care.
This is a role that makes a real difference. By providing compassionate, person-centred support, you will not only help individuals through their grief but also strengthen the wider community response to suicidehelping to create a place where people are recognised, valued, and supported.
Person Specification
Experience
Essential
- - Experience of working in health, social care, bereavement, or voluntary sector settings.
- - Experience of supporting individuals experiencing trauma, loss, or crisis.
- - Experience of working with vulnerable groups and those with complex needs.
- - Experience of multi-agency working and partnership collaboration.
Desirable
- - Experience of facilitating groups, peer support, or community workshops.
- - Experience of working within a suicide bereavement or postvention service.
Qualifications
Essential
- - GCSE Grade A to C in English and Maths.
- - Willingness to undertake specialist suicide bereavement or postvention training.
Desirable
- - Training or qualifications in a related field (e.g. counselling, social work, mental health, advocacy).
- - Accreditation in Mental Health First Aid, ASIST, or Suicide First Aid.
Person Specification
Experience
Essential
- - Experience of working in health, social care, bereavement, or voluntary sector settings.
- - Experience of supporting individuals experiencing trauma, loss, or crisis.
- - Experience of working with vulnerable groups and those with complex needs.
- - Experience of multi-agency working and partnership collaboration.
Desirable
- - Experience of facilitating groups, peer support, or community workshops.
- - Experience of working within a suicide bereavement or postvention service.
Qualifications
Essential
- - GCSE Grade A to C in English and Maths.
- - Willingness to undertake specialist suicide bereavement or postvention training.
Desirable
- - Training or qualifications in a related field (e.g. counselling, social work, mental health, advocacy).
- - Accreditation in Mental Health First Aid, ASIST, or Suicide First Aid.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
