Suicide prevention
Suicide is a complex issue which can affect anyone. There is no single cause and no single solution. As a member of the Zero Suicide Alliance, we believe that suicide is not inevitable. We play a critical role within the communities of Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Haringey and Islington to do all we can to prevent suicide, and work closely with our partnership organisations to make a difference.
In this section, we aim to share information, advice and resources to help and support you, as well as information about the work we do at the North London Mental Health Partnership.
Our suicide prevention strategy
We have developed a suicide prevention strategy. You can download the Suicide Prevention Strategy [pdf] 722KB here. The strategy has five principles:
- Everyone in our Trust has something to contribute to this work – we value the diversity of our shared skills, experience and ideas.
- We respect the unique contribution of the narratives of those lost to suicide and the experience of those affected by suicide; and those who live with suicidal thoughts and feelings.
- We recognise that suicide prevention, learning and support are all interconnected, and that we will only achieve better outcomes by focussing on learning from suicide and supporting each other.
- Suicide prevention requires safer care for ALL, irrespective of perceived risk. Strengthening the therapeutic relationship is at the heart of safe care and suicide prevention.
- Suicide relates to many factors, some of which are outside of our control as NHS Trusts. We will work in collaboration with multi-agency partners and communities to make improvements across different systems.
North Central London Suicide Prevention Partnership
In North Central London, an average of 93 people die by suicide every year; each of these is a life lost and a community devastated.
To address this, public health teams in Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Haringey and Islington, along with the NHS, have come together to form the NCL Suicide Prevention Partnership. Their goal is to reduce the suicide rate locally through population-based suicide prevention measures as well as programmes targeted to those at highest risk.
Backed by NCL Integrated Care Board funding, the programme partnership is seeking to meet their goals by delivering the following:
- Suicide prevention training for professionals working within North Central London
- Suicide awareness raising campaigns to improve public awareness of mental health resources
- Suicide prevention community grant funding for local VCSE organisations
- Support for high-risk children and young people to reduce risk of suicide
- Support for individuals who present to emergency departments with suicidal thoughts and/or behaviours
We have also set up the North Central London Suicide Prevention Community, a space for local professionals to connect and share best practice. Members of the network will have access to:
- Regular newsletters which contain updates on local and national suicide prevention activity
- Learning forums tailored to themes that members of the community would like to learn more about
- Updates on future activities, such as training and funding opportunities
More information on the programme can be found on the ICS website. The best way to get involved is to sign up to the NCL Suicide Prevention Community mailing list or emailing ncl.suicideprevention@barnet.gov.uk for more information.
