Free online suicide awareness and prevention training for all students and staff

Suicide has long been a taboo subject with many people finding it difficult to talk about. However, learning to be open and having a conversation could really help to support an individual at risk.

In the UK, there are almost 6,000 deaths by suicide each year, and it’s an issue that can affect us all. Deaths by suicide are both avoidable and preventable.

Zero Suicide Alliance is a collaborative of NHS trusts, businesses and individuals who are committed to spreading the message of suicide prevention in the UK. Raising awareness and giving opportunities for training can help to improve the support for individuals contemplating suicide.

Zero Suicide Alliance provide a free online suicide prevention training course which is accessible to all.

The training is approximately 20 minutes long and aims to help you:

• Identify when an individual is presenting with suicidal thoughts/behaviour
• Lead a conversation about suicide in a supportive manner
• Signpost an individual to the correct services for support

As members of the UCL community, we can all play a part in supporting others, so we strongly encourage all staff and students to take this training as a first step towards creating a ‘suicide safer’ campus across the university.

To access the training please visit the Zero Suicide Alliance website.

New: Public Health England (PHE) e-learning module

In addition to the training above, this new training resource from Public Health England (PHE) hopes to raise vital awareness of suicide for the wider public health workforce, including those in health, social care, the charitable sector and the public. This e-learning package provides information about suicide and what we can do to help prevent it.

Launched on World Mental Health Day on 10 October, the 'We Need to Talk about Suicide' initiative, developed jointly by Health Education England and PHE highlights the impact of suicide on individuals, families and communities.

Everyone has a role to play in asking about suicide – and you don’t need to be an expert in mental health to do it. If you are worried about someone don’t be afraid to talk to them, you won’t make things worse, and you can only help.

The training takes approximately 1 hour to complete.

To access the training please visit this website.