A CHARITY is calling on the government to provide more support for bereaved people after estimating that up to 290,000 people over 65 have lost a loved one since the start of the pandemic. 

The analysis, by charity Independent Age, notes a 17 per cent increase on the average number of deaths over the past five years. 

Of those who have lost a loved one, the charity predicts that 20,000 people are likely to develop complicated grief: painful emotions of loss that continue after the “normal” grieving process. 

Gillian, who lost her husband John last year after 50 years of marriage, said Covid-19 had made the grieving process “so much harder.” 

“I was the only attendee at his funeral as I didn’t want older relatives to risk catching the virus,” she said, adding that she had not been made aware of bereavement services. 

Independent Age chief executive Deborah Alsina said: “There was a lack of funding for bereavement services prior to the pandemic, but that cannot carry on.

“It is now absolutely essential that the government takes action and prioritises funding for bereavement services to match the increase in need caused by coronavirus and the restrictions on daily life.”