Members' Stories

Oct 2024

Although Bereavement Support Payment has been extended to cohabiting couples with children, unmarried couples without children are still being denied support. WAY member Michelle shares their story…

Campaign to extend bereavement support payments: Sophie’s story

Jul 2024

When Sophie’s husband Paul died in 2023, she was 17 weeks pregnant. Her Bereavement Support Payments are due to stop just after her baby turns one. Here is Sophie’s story…

Extending Bereavement Support Payments: Lauren’s story

Mar 2023

When Lauren’s husband Rob died last June, she started to receive the first of 18 monthly instalments of Bereavement Support Payment to help support herself and her daughter, Amelia. Although she was g…

Siobhan's Story: Cohabiting Couples Campaign

Feb 2023

When Siobhan discovered through conversations with Citizen’s Advice that parents who were not married or in a civil partnership were unable to claim the support available at that time to married paren…

Kathy's Story: Cohabiting Couples Campaign

Feb 2023

WAY Ambassador Kathy Ford lost her partner Keith in November 2018 to a sudden heart attack. They had been together for 19 years and had two sons together. In June 2019, Kathy gave evidence to the Work…

Elanor shares her story to support our Cohabiting Couples Campaign

Feb 2023

Elanor’s partner Robin died in 2005 after a motorbike accident. She was pregnant with their only daughter Sophie when Robin died and has struggled for the past 17 years to bring up Sophie as a lone pa…

Celebrating campaign success: Georgia's Story

Feb 2023

Georgia Elms was widowed in 2006 when her husband Jon died suddenly from meningitis aged just 38 – the next day she discovered she was pregnant with the couple’s second child.

Celebrating campaign success: Pete's Story

Jan 2023

WAY member Pete Bailey has been campaigning to extend bereavement support to cohabiting couples since his partner died in 2010, when the couple’s youngest son was just six weeks old. Their boys are no…

Celebrating campaign success: Laura's Story

Jan 2023

York-based WAY member Laura has been campaigning to extend bereavement support to unmarried parents since her partner Nigel died of a heart attack in February 2020, leaving her to bring up their 2-yea…

You don't have to face widowhood alone.

If you've lost your partner before your 51st birthday and live in the UK – whether you were married or not, with or without children, whatever your sexual orientation, race or religion – you are welcome to join us.

Joining up to WAY takes minutes and costs just £30 a year, which can be paid either by direct debit or PayPal.

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“I will always remain a member of WAY as I know that my membership helps WAY to continue to support other members and reach out to new members.

Since WAY has made such a difference to me after being widowed young, I want to do all that I can to help that support continue” - WAY member, Jenny