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World Suicide Prevention Day
- Rowena Millen
- Sep 8, 2025
- 2 min read
World Suicide Prevention Day is this Wednesday, 10th September – the same day it is every year.
We’ve been reading articles and research, deciphering the most effective ways we can support our people on top of our Employee Assistance Programme and through all the reading, this line from a Samaritans article has really stuck in our minds.“Suicide is not inevitable. You can interrupt someone’s suicidal thoughts. You could save a life”
In the UK or Ireland, someone dies by suicide every 90 minutes and one in four people have had suicidal thoughts.
How do we help? How can you help? The best place to start is a conversation. If someone looks down or distressed, it is important that we recognise the signs and look to establish open dialogue. Be kind – you don’t have to go straight in with “you look down, are you ok?” you can start with “nice shoes” “your lunch smells great, what is that” because starting a conversation can be all it takes to distract someone from how they may be thinking or feeling.
A simple connection with another person, this can be all it takes to interrupt suicidal thoughts and can lead to further conversations that may be helpful long term.
In March of this year, the Samaritans ran their Small Talk Saves Lives campaign for the 8th year, highlighting the importance of small talk and how to start a conversation – even with a stranger. Though the campaign is over for another year, the small talk shouldn’t be.
If you, or someone you know is struggling, there is always someone there to listen. Some of the organisations available to contact are:Samaritans – Available 24/7 – Call 116 123SHOUT – Text SHOUT to 85258Mind – Available Monday to Friday 9am-6pm – Call 0300 102 1234CALM – Available Everyday 5pm-Midnight – Call 0800 58 58 58
If you would prefer not to talk on the phone, you can also chat with many of these services via their websites. They all offer various self-help tools.
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