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Last week, Thrive LDN, the citywide movement launched by Mayor Sadiq Khan to improve the mental health and wellbeing of all Londoners, announced a new training partnership with the national charity PAPYRUS to support suicide prevention among young people.
Commencing later this year, a series of suicide awareness and prevention courses will be delivered across the education sector in the capital.
The training will be made available to schools, colleges, and universities in all London boroughs and will educate and support hundreds of Londoners in effective techniques in suicide awareness and prevention.
Dr Phil Moore, Chair of Thrive LDN’s Suicide Prevention Group, said:
“We believe the only way we can help young Londoners is to create an open city where people have the confidence to speak about mental health and to seek help when they need it.
“It’s so important that agencies and organisations work together and towards the goal of making London a zero suicide city. Our Suicide Prevention Group has been the driving force behind this work and we are proud to be partnering with PAPYRUS for the benefit of young Londoners.
The announcement follows on from the London Schools Programme, an initiative launched by Thrive LDN and Mental Health Frist Aid (MHFA) England in the summer of 2018 to train 100 Youth MHFA instructors. The programme will eventually see Youth MHFA training delivered across the capital, so that by 2021 every school in London has at least one Youth Mental Health First Aider.
Together both programmes support the Mayor’s Health Inequalities Strategy, which seeks in part to improve mental health, end mental health stigma and ensure all Londoners feel comfortable taking about mental health.
Caroline Hounsell, Director of Communities and Content Development, Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) England, said:
"We know that suicide is the biggest killers of young people under 35, so it is really encouraging to see Thrive LND and PAPYRUS teaming up to tackle this issue head on.
“Alongside Youth Mental Health First Aiders in London schools, this training will further empower frontline staff in the capital to act effectively to support young people struggling with their mental health.”
Find out more about Youth MHFA training here.