In 2021, Support After Suicide Partnership joined with Samaritans, NSPA and With
You to form the Suicide Prevention Consortium, funded through the Health and
Wellbeing Alliance via the Department of Health and Social Care. The programme
involved the set up a number of consortia focussing on lots of different topics with
the aim of informing the government’s response to significant public health
challenges.
Over the last 5 years, the consortium has produced a vast range of resources all of
which can be found here Resources – SASP. We have looked at the impact of
alcohol on suicide and how alcohol dependency can affect the support individuals at
risk of suicide receive. We’ve also looked at this through the lens of LGBTQ+
communities to hear about their experiences of accessing support with suicidality
and alcohol misuse. We’ve heard about the impact of economic disadvantage on
suicide and self harm and in 2024 we went further, looking at suicidality and suicide
bereavement among those with no fixed address. We have explored stigma around
suicide across traveller groups and thought about our own practices in the process of
ensuring the research was accessible as possible for people who belong to travelling
communities.
The suicide prevention consortium was then, and has always been, informed by
people with lived experience of suicidality and suicide bereavement. Each member
of the consortium brought their own perspectives and insights, and for SASP, we
wanted to make sure that suicide bereavement was never overlooked or forgotten.
We know that bereavement by suicide can be devastating. Research evidences the
need for timely and proactive support for people bereaved in this way (Pitman, et al.,
2018). Various research describes the impact of suicide bereavement on loved ones
and highlights the changing support needs of people bereaved in this way, including
difficulties navigating services, experiences of stigma and social isolation, and
connecting with others (Ross, Kolves, & De Leo, 2019).
People affected by health inequalities tend to experience these challenges more
acutely. In racialised groups and communities, for instance, stigma and fear of
negative reactions may be heightened, which may affect treatment and help-seeking
and impede trauma processing (Groff, Ruzek, Bongar, & Cordove, 2016).
People bereaved by the sudden death of a friend or family member are 65% more
likely to attempt suicide if the deceased died by suicide than if they died by natural
causes while 8% of people bereaved by suicide dropped out of education or
employment (Pitman, Osborn, Rantell, & King, 2016). That’s why our work to further
our knowledge on the impact of these risk factors on accessing support was so
important.
In the last year, we released our report, ‘Suicide prevention principles: from policy to
practice’, which brought together everything we had learned from the previous years
into one place, calling for person-centred support and a ‘no wrong door’ approach.
This year we talked about how this could work in the new NHS long term plan, again
ensuring we heard from people who had been bereaved by suicide. Our latest report,
Suicide Prevention Consortium: Insights Report is now available to read and
download from our site Suicide Prevention Consortium: Insights Report 2026 –
SASP. You can also watch consortium members and hear from people with lived
experience too Video Resources – SASP.
Yes, we have done lots, but there’s lots more to do. We will continue to press the
case for accessible suicide bereavement support services and we will continue to
ensure that suicide bereavement remains part of any and all suicide prevention
efforts.