UK suicide prevention charity the Baton of Hope is introducing a workplace pledge to help organisations prevent death by suicide.

The Workplace Pledge gives organisations a toolkit to enable them to take action

Launching at the charity’s first national conference on 16 May, the Workplace Pledge is a comprehensive and practical guide for leaders and HR professionals about what organisations can and should be doing to help prevent death by suicide.

Each year more than 6,000 people across the UK take their own lives – one person every 90 minutes – and numbers have not changed dramatically over the last 20 years despite numerous initiatives. It is the biggest killer of men under 50 in the UK. The World Health Organisation estimates that 135 people are affected by each death. That means more than 800,000 people every year in the UK are affected by suicide.

The new pledge supports work by the Baton of Hope to facilitate a zero-suicide society.

Founder Mike McCarthy, who tragically lost his son Ross to suicide in 2021, said: “We cannot turn a blind eye to the national catastrophe of suicide any longer. If a similar death toll were caused by any other physical illness, it would rightly trigger a national outcry.

“Unlike the openness surrounding conditions such as cancer or heart disease, ‘admitting’ to thoughts of suicide is often met with shame and stigma. While physical ailments are accepted without question as valid reasons for time off work, mental health struggles are still concealed behind fabricated stories.

“While organisations and individuals are overwhelmingly keen to help address this complicated issue, they are often hesitant to act for fear of making things worse. The Workplace Pledge gives organisations a toolkit to enable them to take action.

“Suicide is preventable and every one of us is capable of generating hope.”

The Workplace Pledge offers a framework to guide organisations toward comprehensive suicide prevention. This involves raising awareness, providing support resources and prioritising mental wellbeing within the workplace.

The Baton of Hope conference, titled ‘Making Suicide Everyone’s Business’, aims to mobilise businesses, organisations and individuals across the UK to take action.

Featuring speakers including former political spin doctor Alastair Campbell and world-renowned suicide prevention expert Professor Rory O’Connor, the event is a call to arms against a crisis that affects us all.

The event is open to all and tickets are available on this link.

Further information on the Workplace Pledge is available here.