Today many people will be signing off for Christmas and New Year. Of course, suicidal feelings don't sign off. It can also be an incredibly hard time of year for those who have lost someone they know and love. So in amongst the festivities do keep an eye out for others. It doesn't take much to be the life jacket for someone else - just checking might make a world of difference. Thanks to all the organisations and individuals who have supported our work this year. Not least those with lived experiences who so openly helped produce The Long Goodbye. Next year, we're going on tour. More on that in 2025. #suicideprevention #thelifejacket
About us
The Life Jacket is a suicide prevention initiative alongside and in support of R;pple Suicide Prevention Charity. Our mission is to reduce the number of lives lost to suicide by giving people the knowledge, skills and confidence to take action, start a conversation and give help and hope to those who need it. We're working with organisations big and small, and encouraging them to train their employees in suicide prevention - as well as install R;pple's interceptive technology on all computers.
- Website
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https://www.thelifejacket.co.uk
External link for The Life Jacket
- Industry
- Mental Health Care
- Company size
- 2-10 employees
- Type
- Nonprofit
- Specialties
- suicide prevention
Updates
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On 6th December 2023, a young man from Devon called Alistair didn't show up for his shift at the pub. Two days later Alistair was found having died by suicide. In memory of Alistair and to raise awareness of what people can do to prevent suicide, this past weekend The Ships Tavern donated the cost of the first 17 meals ordered on Friday, Saturday and Sunday to The Life Jacket. Each meal served on a bespoke plate. In total they have donated £1,222 which we'll put back into the work we do. Thank you to them and everyone else who supports suicide prevention. #suicideprevention #thelifejacket
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The Life Jacket reposted this
Creative Director at Havas People | Championing suicide prevention through The Life Jacket
Nice news last week that The Life Jacket has a couple of nominations at The RAD Awards. It means the incredible work Ripple Suicide Prevention Charity do will be seen by hundreds of employers who can help reduce the number of lives lost to suicide. The sobering reality is that between now and the 29th January, the statistics say 1,105 people will take their lives. In the UK alone. So my ask is this. Please take action today. The Life Jacket works. 70 organisations - from major employers to the local family butchers - are already on board with it. Our training has been downloaded over 1.6k times. It's started countless conversations. The training has helped save 4 lives that we know of. And the scale of R;pple's work stretches even further. Their interceptive tool has been adopted by 140+ organisations. Has 2 million active users. Has intercepted 47,000+ harmful searches. And intervened at the most critical time to save 31 lives. Alice Hendy MBE has turned the tragic loss of her brother into something quite remarkable. And we're very proud to support her, Elena Yaneva and the rest of the team in what is truly life-saving work. #ripplesuicideprevention #thelifejacket #suicideprevention Havas People
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Through all the things that we do, the one constant message we try to give people is that everyone can turn someone else's life around. Everyone can be someone else's life jacket. More often than not, though, it's the stories that make this idea real. Stories like this one from Beth. It's not easy to share something so personal, but we know it helps others when we do. Thank you Beth. And to the man on the bicycle.
It was International Men's Day on Tuesday so I want to tell you a story. Like all good stories about bad days, this one happens in the rain. I was in my late teens and I was frequently suicidal back then. On one particular breaking point I walked, in the dark and cold rain, to a motorway bridge. I leaned over the barrier. Still on the right side — the safe side — and stared into the tarmac. The rain beat down. The cars zoomed underneath and, occasionally, behind. I stared and I cried and I gripped the railing until my knuckles went white. No one saw. No one stopped. I figured I would mount the barrier unseen and drop to the motorway below like a shadow. And then — “Are you alright?” It was a man on a bicycle, dressed in a grey tracksuit that had darkened in the rain. He had no jacket or helmet. Water trickled from his hair into his eyes. “Don’t do anything stupid,” he said, and I didn’t know what to say. I hadn’t expected anyone to notice. I certainly hadn’t noticed him. “I know what it feels like.” And he pulled out his phone. He clicked the buttons with difficulty, probably because his hands were frozen, and wiped the raindrops from the screen. And he turned the phone to face me. It was a photo of a grave. A very small grave. With flowers and teddies and balloons. “That’s my son, Billy. His grave. When we lost him I didn’t know how to cope. I felt like packing it all in and ending it. But I didn’t. Because it would’ve been such a waste, and I know he wouldn’t have wanted it. Life is important. You shouldn’t waste it.” I was taken aback. Someone who had experienced such intense pain was actually empathising with me. He was relating my situation, without knowing what it was, to his own heartbreaking one because he thought it might help someone in trouble. He was doing so at great inconvenience to himself, soaked to the bone. And he was the only one, out of all those who had driven by, who stopped to see if I was hurting. Because of his situation I took his sentiment seriously. I moved away from the barrier. “Thank you for stopping. I’m so sorry for your loss. But I’ll be alright.” “Is there something I can do? Can I walk you to someone you know?” “I’ll be okay. I’ll go straight home.” He looked at me sceptically. “Okay. But I’ll be watching.” I thanked him again and walked the way he had come. When I turned around, he was still sat on his bicycle seat, watching me as he had promised. I did go straight home. I thought about him a lot then and in the years since. I doubt Billy’s dad remembers me, but he made a difference. Empathy is powerful. You don’t have to be a therapist to help someone in need. Sometimes you can just stop pedalling and check in with them. And you can hope that, when you need it, someone stops pedalling for you too. Thank you to all the amazing men who make a difference and please know you never have to suffer in silence. #internationalmensday
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Every Life Jacket that enters the world ends up on its own path. Creating its own story as it travels from place to place and person to person. This is the start of another story. Bernadette works for Virgin Atlantic. She took a Life Jacket on a recent flight to Johannesburg. Giving it a very comfortable looking seat in Upper Class. The jacket prompted a conversation with Sarah - who tragically lost a close friend to suicide and had been at the funeral the day before. After they chatted Bernadette passed the jacket to Sarah. You can see her here in Nelson Mandela Square. Hopefully we’ll share more on this journey soon, but something Bernadette said brilliantly captures what the Life Jacket can do. “I can’t believe how much power and comfort the idea and the Life Jacket offers. Really the importance of talking, sharing and caring goes far.” Thank you Bernadette. Whether you're an employee or employer, please talk about suicide prevention. And deploy Ripple Suicide Prevention Charity's interceptive tool that intercepts harmful online searches. #thelifejacket #suicideprevention #suicide #virginatlantic #johannesburg #nelsonmandelasquare Virgin
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Last week to mark #worldsuicidepreventionday we sent 17 copies of The Long Goodbye to 17 business leaders across the UK. Encouraging them to play a bigger, more vocal part in suicide prevention. One of my very first jobs was at Virgin Megastore, so in theory Richard Branson was one of my earliest bosses. Seemed fitting to send the first to him. (And yes, you can write on the back of the vinyl.) The song is available on all streaming and social platforms. #suicideprevention #thelifejacket
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The Life Jacket reposted this
Creative Director at Havas People | Championing suicide prevention through The Life Jacket
Today is World Suicide Prevention Day and a year to the day since I sat at this bench and 'launched' The Life Jacket. So I thought I'd come back. Quite a lot has changed since then. I'm no longer talking to my own phone, but to employees at organisations over the world. During this time I have met so many people and heard so many stories. One thing that continues to strike me is how so many people quietly say goodbye to the things and people in their lives before they say goodbye to life itself. My friend Alex, for instance, slowly drifted away from his friends, colleagues and work. He sold his possessions - including his entire vinyl collection. He sorted out his life affairs. And he's not alone. So, today - from this bench - we are releasing a song called The Long Goodbye. Written alongside those with lived suicide experience, The Long Goodbye touches on some of the often unseen signs that someone maybe feeling suicidal. And shows us how we can help. You can listen to it on all the usual streaming platforms, including: Spotify: https://lnkd.in/eBSxNRr6 Apple Music: https://lnkd.in/eptwY4aX And there's an educational video that shares the stories behind the lyrics: https://lnkd.in/eesB_hvt We're also sending personalised vinyl editions to organisations across the UK - encouraging them to do more to educate their employees on the role they can play in reducing the number of lives lost to suicide. More on this to come. Listen to the song. Share the video. Take a few minutes to learn how you can turn someone else's life around. As it was at the start, our work continues to support and raise awareness Ripple Suicide Prevention Charity. If you haven't already downloaded the R;pple tool, please do so today. It may have saved Alex's life. It has certainly saved many others. Thank you. And thanks to Inger Kristine Steinsland, Reece Creedon and everyone else at Havas People who keeps on supporting this work. #suicideprevention #worldsuicidepreventionday #suicide #thelifejacket #thelonggoodbye
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A few months back, my daughters wanted to get involved in The Life Jacket. So together we have created Planet Zero. Planet Zero is a place where there is zero hate. Zero hurt. Zero pain. In fact, being kind is literally the coolest thing you can possibly be. One day, two intrepid explorers from Planet Zero found themselves on Planet Earth. They thought Earth was cool. They thought human beings were cool too. But they also saw a side that they didn't like very much, and have decided to hang around to fix it. They want to make Earth a little more Planet Zero. And they are going to start in schools. There's more about how they'll do this to come, but for now here's the lowdown on Ned and Rockey. Ned. Created by Elizabeth. Ned is the chief. He has one eye and one mission. To make everyday school life better for children. An interesting fact about Ned is that no one knows what he's wearing under his Life Jacket. Rockey. Created by Rebecca. Rockey is the tech genius. They are so smart they even built themselves. Rockey likes it when tech is used for good. They're pretty worried about the dangers smartphones, social media and the evil minds that lurk within it present. So Rockey's here to educate children (as well as parents and teachers) on staying safe. More to come in the weeks and months ahead. #thelifejacket #suicideprevention #schools #education
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When I used to win the Ashes for England in the garden, I was always Graham Thorpe and Nasser Hussain. Inevitably we'd come together after another top order collapse. We'd consolidate, steady the ship and then just as we had hope again Jason Gillespie would get one to rear off a length and break Hussain's finger. So it'd be down to Thorpe to take us to the unlikeliest of victories. More often than not with a trademark pull. Leg raise. Swivel. Roll of the wrists. Four. Arms aloft. Almost all my idols were from sport. I gravitated to those with fight. Those who'd repel. Overcome the odds. Those who had a 'never say die' attitude. Now obviously sport and life are very different, but the news that Graham Thorpe took his own life is particularly numbing. It's a stark reminder that suicide can affect anyone of any age, gender, background, experience and perceived mental toughness. It's also numbing because we talk about people being that metaphorical life jacket for others. From the very open statement given by his wife and daughter yesterday, they were his life jacket. They couldn't have done more. Now it sounds like they are thinking of launching a foundation in his name. As others have shared, though, in being so honest yesterday they will have already done a huge amount to remove the stigma that still surrounds suicide. If they decide to do more, I'm sure there will be thousands prepared to go into bat with them. #grahamthorpe #suicideprevention #suicide (*The design on the jacket below is an old postcard expanded with a bit of AI. We won't be making them.)
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The other day I had the opportunity to speak to Fonterra employees about The Life Jacket. Fonterra is an Aotearoa New Zealand dairy co-operative owned by thousands of farming families. Sadly one of those families experienced the loss of a family member to suicide last year. One of the questions I was asked was whether I am driven by hope or an honest belief we can reduce the number of lives lost to suicide. Which is a fair question and not one I'd been asked before. But my answer is that I believe it. As with any of the world's problems, though, to affect change people need to stop sharing how appalled, shocked and staggered they are by things, and put some energy into doing something about them. That's easier to say on a Teams call at 5am, than it is actually doing it of course. But if we put our minds to it, it's achievable. #suicideprevention #suicide #thelifejacket
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