National Suicide Prevention Alliance Declaration

Suicide prevention is everyone’s business

4,575 suicides were recorded in England in 2016.  A conservative estimate of 10 people are directly affected by each of these deaths gives a minimum of almost 50,000 people annually who could benefit from support after suicide.  Suicide is not just a tragedy for the person who loses their life. It also shatters the lives of those left behind – families, friends and communities. There is no simple formula for reducing suicide because the risk factors are wide ranging and complex. Suicidal feelings and behaviour usually result from multiple issues in someone’s life and can be related to many different factors including demographics, social issues, settings or times of crisis. Given this complexity, we will only save more lives if all parts of society work together.

Who we are

The National Suicide Prevention Alliance is an alliance of public, private and voluntary and community organisations in England who care about suicide prevention and are willing to take action to reduce suicide and support those bereaved or affected by suicide.

The National Suicide Prevention Alliance was created in 2013, evolving out of the 2012 Call to Action for Suicide Prevention in England. Our work complements the Government’s strategy Preventing Suicide in England and the Department of Health is one of our members.

The difference we aim to make

We want to see a significant reduction in suicide in England. We think this will happen if we work together to bring about the following outcomes:

  • High-risk groups, and the wider population, are encouraged to seek help when they are experiencing emotional distress
  • People in distress have more options for support and understand what help is on offer
  • It is harder to access the means of suicide
  • There is better information and support for people bereaved or affected by suicide
  • Many more organisations send their people on suicide awareness and prevention training
  • There is more collaborative working between agencies with an interest in suicide reduction – to share good practice, learn lessons, carry out joint projects and pool resources
  • There is better data relating to suicide prevention and it is easier to obtain

What we do

  1. Deliver commitment & influence: We identify public, private and voluntary organisations that can make a difference and we invite them to join us and take action
  2. Mobilise action: We identify the most important issues to work on and we facilitate projects to address them
  3. Build an active network: We facilitate collaborations between organisations who can achieve more by working together
  4. Share best practice: We share information about what organisations are doing to prevent suicide, support those bereaved by suicide and promote good practice in these areas
  5. Raise awareness & build knowledge: We work to improve the quality and accessibility of data about suicide and help improve the evidence base about what works in suicide prevention and bereavement support. We share this intelligence with organisations that can make a difference
  6. Improve support: We share information about support available for people in distress and those bereaved or affected by suicide, to increase options and raise awareness of what’s out there

How we work

We are governed by a Steering Group, elected by the members, and accountable to them via the annual members’ meeting. The Steering Group sets the priorities and monitors progress. The activity is carried out by our members – working together and pooling their resources.