What Khululeka Grief Support does

Khululeka Grief Support is a South African non-profit organization founded in 2005 in Cape Town to deliver bereavement and trauma support programmes for children and adolescents aged 9-19. Originally established in response to the HIV pandemic, the organization provides direct grief counselling and family interventions in the greater Cape Town metro, and extends its reach nationally through training and implementation support to partner organizations. The 11-50 person team is led by Director Wendy Lessing (appointed August 2021) and includes programme management, facilitation, counselling, training, and monitoring and evaluation functions.

The flagship offering is the Abangane programme, an 8-session cognitive behavioural therapy-based grief support curriculum validated by a 2017 randomized controlled trial published in The Lancet Global Health by Tulane University's Highly Vulnerable Children Research Center, with reported 144-202% outcome improvements. Khululeka sells a portfolio of proprietary therapeutic resources — The Khu Kit (R950), Worry Muncher (R120), Someone I Love Died (R150), and the I Am Not Alone storybook and workbook (R100 each) — translated into five South African languages, alongside free awareness tools (Whirlpool of Grief, Freedom Bird, Trust Bus, The Total Truth). Products are distributed through an e-commerce storefront and a partner channel.

Revenue is generated across three streams: institutional donations and grants from a named set of funders (City of Cape Town, Western Cape Department of Social Development, DGMT, Nelson Mandela Children's Fund, RSNF, Empower), paid training and mentoring workshops for child-sector professionals, and product sales. Khululeka has trained implementation partners — most notably 125 HIVSA facilitators, plus NACOSA and Future Families — to scale the Abangane programme nationally. The organization is registered as NPO 045-467 and PBO 930026591, holds 18A tax-exempt status, and adheres to the Independent Code of Governance for NPOs in South Africa.

Name

Khululeka Grief Support

Legal name

Khululeka Grief Support

Website

https://khululeka.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

South African non-profit founded in 2005 in Cape Town delivering evidence-based bereavement and trauma support programmes for children and adolescents aged 9-19, with national scale-out via trained implementation partners and a portfolio of proprietary therapeutic resources.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Child and Adolescent Grief Support Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Child and Youth Services (62411)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Bereavement & Grief Support Services (Hospice-Affiliated/Independent) (HLADAHAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Palliative Care, Hospice & Serious Illness Support (BPAGACAK), Trauma-Informed Care & Crisis Response (School-Based) (EDAKAMAF), Family Engagement & Caregiver Support Programs (SEL/Mental Health) (EDAKAMAK)

Keywords

• Grief support services
• Child bereavement counselling
• Adolescent trauma programmes
• Mental health interventions
• Facilitator training workshops

Headquarters

HQ city

Cape Town, Western Cape

HQ country

South Africa

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grants: Khululeka relies on donations from institutional donors and partners to fund operations. Donors include City of Cape Town, Western Cape Department of Social Development, DGMT, Empower, Future Managers, Grand Slots, Kindness, Nelson Mandela Children's Fund, and RSNF. Donations can be made via PayPal and direct bank deposit.
2. Product Sales (Publications and Resources): Sale of grief support resources and publications including The Khu Kit, Abangane Curriculum, Worry Muncher, Someone I Love Died, and I Am Not Alone storybooks and workbooks. Available for purchase via the Khululeka store.
3. Training and Mentoring Fees: Fees charged for workshop facilitation and ongoing mentoring services to organisations implementing grief support programmes. Training is provided to social workers, teachers, child and youth care workers, and CBO volunteers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Khululeka Grief Support delivers grief and trauma support programmes for bereaved children and adolescents in South Africa. Its core offerings include direct individual and family grief counselling in the Cape Town metro, the evidence-based Abangane 8-session group curriculum for children aged 9-19, facilitator training and mentoring workshops for child-sector professionals, and a catalogue of published grief support resources and therapeutic tools for caregivers.

Product overview

Khululeka Grief Support operates as a single, integrated service offering built around grief and trauma support for children and adolescents. The portfolio comprises six published products sold through the store (The Khu Kit, Abangane Grief Support Curriculum, Worry Muncher, Someone I Love Died, I Am Not Alone Storybook, and I Am Not Alone Workbook), four free therapeutic tools (Whirlpool of Grief, Freedom Bird, Trust Bus, The Total Truth), and three service programmes (Children and Family Grief Support, Training and Mentoring, and Abangane 8-Day Training). The core Abangane programme is the centrepiece—anchored by the curriculum manual and supported by the 8-day facilitator training—with the store products serving as complementary resources for caregivers, facilitators, and bereaved children themselves.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Abangane: A grief support programme for children aged 9-19, designed to help participants understand grief and loss, process their grief, develop coping skills, and establish life planning skills. Abangane means 'friends' in Zulu. The programme consists of 8 sessions with 100 minutes of scripted activities each.

Products and services

• The Khu Kit A comprehensive resource kit to help caregivers support bereaved children, providing an overview of how age and developmental stage affect understanding of grief, tips on appropriate responses, guidance on explaining causes of premature death in South Africa, and instructions for planning and facilitating grief support groups. Priced at R950.00.
• Abangane Grief Support Curriculum An 8-session group support curriculum manual for facilitators working with children aged 9-19 who have experienced the death of someone important. Each session includes 100 minutes of detailed scripted activities, incorporating cognitive behavioural therapy and a proprietary selection tool targeting teen girls who are feeling depressed. Priced at R950.00.
• Worry Muncher A therapeutic soft toy designed to help children verbalise their thoughts and worries, serving as a tool for parents and therapists to build relationships and understand what concerns children. Priced at R120.00.
• Someone I Love Died A collection of stories from young people across Africa providing insight into experiences of death, grief, and cultural rituals. Available in English, Afrikaans, isiZulu, isiXhosa, and Sesotho. Priced at R150.00.
• I Am Not Alone Storybook A storybook about a young boy whose mother dies and whose grandmother helps him through the loss, designed as a tool to help younger children overcome grief and loss. Priced at R100.00.
• I Am Not Alone Workbook A companion workbook to the I Am Not Alone storybook where children draw pictures expressing their own situations and feelings as the story progresses. Priced at R100.00.
• Children and Family Grief Support Direct individual grief counselling, family interventions, assessments, and referrals for children, teens, and their families in the greater Cape Town metro, delivered face-to-face by experienced Khululeka staff.
• Training and Mentoring 2, 3, and 4-day workshops for social workers, teachers, child and youth care workers, and community-based organisation volunteers on supporting bereaved children, including theories, tools, and practical facilitation techniques, with ongoing mentoring for those implementing grief support groups.
• Abangane 8-Day Training An intensive 8-day training programme consisting of 4 days of basic training, 1 day of supervisor training, and 3 days of skills strengthening after implementing the first support group, designed for organisations rolling out the Abangane programme.

Quantifiable outcome

• Significant decrease in problematic grief and depressive symptoms among Abangane participants (Tulane RCT, The Lancet Global Health, 2017)
• +7 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• HIVSAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerImplementation partner rolling out the Abangane programme. 125 HIVSA facilitators have been trained by Khululeka in the Abangane grief support curriculum. Khululeka provides training and mentoring support.
• NACOSAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerImplementation partner rolling out the Abangane programme as part of HIV, AIDS, and TB response across southern Africa. NACOSA's chairperson is also on Khululeka's board.
• Future FamiliesmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerImplementation partner currently rolling out the Abangane programme as an evidence-based intervention for adolescent girls and young women.
• Western Cape Education DepartmentminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in providing grief support training to teachers in the Western Cape education system.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Comfort Zone Camp: Comfort Zone Camp is a US NPO providing bereavement programmes and camps for children who have lost a parent or sibling. Comparable to Khululeka as a children-focused bereavement NPO delivering structured, facilitator-led group programmes, though its geography (US) makes it a non-overlapping peer.
• The Dougy Center: The Dougy Center is the founding US children's bereavement support organisation (est. 1982), offering direct peer-support groups for grieving children, families, and teens. It is highly comparable to Khululeka as a specialist NPO delivering structured child/adolescent grief support, and also trains facilitators externally—mirroring Khululeka's Abangane model.
• Winston's Wish: Winston's Wish is a UK charity dedicated to supporting bereaved children, young people, and their families, offering counselling, a helpline, publications, and training for professionals. Directly comparable to Khululeka on beneficiary (bereaved children/adolescents), service mix (direct support + professional training), and NPO funding model.
• Judi's House: Judi's House is a US grief support centre for children and families, offering peer support groups, clinical services, and research/training partnerships. Comparable to Khululeka on its integration of direct service, research-driven practice, and bereavement-specific programming for children.
• Child Bereavement UK: Child Bereavement UK supports bereaved children, parents, and families across the UK, and trains professionals (health, education, social care) in bereavement support. Closely comparable to Khululeka on both the family-counselling side and the training-for-child-sector-professionals side.

Regional players

• Cotlands: Cotlands is a South African NPO focused on early childhood development and the wellbeing of vulnerable children, including bereavement-affected families. Regionally comparable to Khululeka as a South African NPO working with vulnerable children, although ECD-focused rather than grief-specific.

Broad incumbents

• Sesame Workshop: Sesame Workshop operates Sesame Street in Communities, including grief and bereavement resources for children distributed across Africa. Comparable as a large, well-funded NPO producing multilingual grief/bereavement content for children and the adults who care for them—a broader incumbent in the same beneficiary space.
• Hospice Foundation of America: Hospice Foundation of America provides bereavement programme resources, professional training, and public education around end-of-life and grief support. Comparable as a broader incumbent in bereavement education and professional training, though not child-specific.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/KhululekaGS
• Instagraminstagram.com/khululekags
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/khululeka-grief-support

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Khululeka Grief Support