Samaritans of Grantham call for local suicide prevention funding to continue ahead of World Suicide Prevention Day

An open letter has called for the Government to do more to fund suicide prevention schemes, both in Grantham and nationwide.

Andrew Pughe-Jones, a representative of the Samaritans of Grantham has shared an open letter ahead of World Suicide Prevention Day.

Andrew writes:

“Sunday September 10 is World Suicide Prevention Day with its theme of “creating hope through action” but we want to see more action from the Government when it comes to funding suicide prevention, both across the country and here in Grantham.

As a volunteer and trustee at Grantham branch of the Samaritans, I gladly give my time for free, but many suicide prevention initiatives run by a whole variety of organisations, including local councils, are completely reliant on a specific pot of funding that is set to stop in March 2024.

At Samaritans, we want to see suicide rates driven down to the lowest levels on record.

I can’t think of a better way of marking this year’s World Suicide Prevention Day than with a government commitment to renew this local funding by investing as little as £1.40 per person - the price of a loaf of bread – to save lives.

My fellow readers can support our call by signing the Saving Lives Can’t Wait petition at www.samaritans.org/saving-lives-cant-wait”#

The Samaritans can be contacted at any time on 116 123, or by visiting https://www.samaritans.org/how-we-can-help/contact-samaritan/

You can send a letter to the Journal by emailing comment@granthamjournal.co.uk