Cruse Bereavement Care Scotland (Cruse) is a voluntary organisation offering counselling and support to bereaved people wherever they live, whatever their age, nationality or belief. All confidences are respected. Cruse co-operates with other organisations and is non political.

The Aberdeen branch was founded in 1978 through funding from Social Work, various commercial organisations in Aberdeen and members of Cruse. Cruse provides:

• one to one counselling by trained, experienced volunteers who are familiar with the problems faced by the bereaved
• support groups where experiences can be shared with others including Friendship After Bereavement (FAB) Group
• talks to interested organisations or groups subject to a speaker being available on the chosen day – a donation is requested
• Young Persons website – designed for, and by, young people to offer support after the death of someone close

Bereavement counselling training courses are held for prospective Cruse counsellors and those whose work brings them into contact with the bereaved. Training is provided for volunteers to answer the national helpline. Initial Client Interview (ICI) training is provided for volunteers to interview prospective clients to assess their needs prior to counselling. CounsellingTrained and experienced Cruse counsellors are available for one to one counselling. Requests for counselling services are taken on Tel: 01224 626199 (with answerphone). Social ActivitiesSocial activities are organised by the Friendship After Bereavement Group. Fraserburgh (Banff & Buchan) and Turriff (Formartine) are covered by Cruse Deveron (see related records)

http://www.crusebereavementcare.org.uk

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