Primrose Hospice: Impact Case Study

The Primrose Hospice team with Ellie Finch during their Level 2 training in Using Minecraft as a Therapeutic Tool. Image Source: Primrose Hospice

Integrating Minecraft into Grief Support for Children and Young People

Primrose Hospice, based in the UK, were introduced to the Using Minecraft as a Therapeutic Tool training programme by their colleagues at KEMP Hospice. In February 2024, the children and young people’s counselling team completed both Level 1 and Level 2 of the training in-person with Ellie Finch. Like KEMP, they were looking for creative and accessible ways to support children in exploring grief.

In their blog article Digging into Therapy, Jenni – Children’s Team Lead at Primrose Hospice – reflects on their experience:

“As a team, although excited, we were all quite apprehensive about training to use Minecraft therapeutically. The amount of gaming/IT skills varied within the team but none of us had ever really played Minecraft. We needn’t have worried – despite breaking a few bricks in places we maybe shouldn’t have we all loved the training and felt skilled enough to use it with young people after. Ellie Finch the trainer was very patient and explained to us that we didn’t need to be an expert in Minecraft to use it therapeutically, just like we don’t need to be artists to use paint in our support.”

The Primrose Hospice team with Ellie Finch during their Level 2 training in Using Minecraft as a Therapeutic Tool. Image Source: Primrose Hospice

After training, the team began introducing Minecraft into their practice:

“Since the training we’ve all used it to varying degrees in our work. For some young people this may be the main activity we use, for others it might just be a one off session. What we have all found is that it’s a unique way to engage young people in the work we do. As well as using Minecraft in one to one therapy we have also held our first Minecraft group session which went well and we learnt a lot. Children were able to join the same world which we had created for them to complete different activities to support them in sharing their feelings.”

When asked about their impressions of the game itself, Jenni shares:

“We like the fact that it is something that our young people feel comfortable and familiar with which is a positive place to start support. It’s great to have another tool we can use to engage children and support them to share how they are feeling. Something we dislike – there’s no undo button – but I guess life doesn’t have an undo button so we’re all learning to embrace the mistakes and blocks we accidentally destroy!”

The response from children and families has been encouraging:

“We have had lots of positive feedback from our first group. One child approached the session with ‘Some excitement and a little anxiety regarding meeting other children’ but left ‘Happy, relaxed and excited to come again’ they also commented that they ‘had so much fun and enjoyed being with the other children.’”

Jenni closes with a reflection on the impact:

“The team were blown away by what a child could express and explore within the Minecraft world. It allowed them to engage without pressure, connect with the therapist, and feel a sense of control over their story.”

The Primrose Team’s characters in Minecraft. Image source: Minecraft