Trust hosts second successful suicide prevention conference

On 7 March 2025 we held our second annual suicide prevention conference. We were joined by staff and colleagues from across the Trust and partner organisations to share knowledge and good practice in suicide prevention.

The conference, held at Fieldhead Hospital in Wakefield, covered a range of topics including:

• A review of the West Yorkshire suicide prevention objectives and the way forward
• Real time suicide surveillance, understanding locations of concerns and reducing the risk to suicide
• A reflection on what works and recommendations for best practice
• What can we learn from incident investigations processes, the impact on families and the workforce
• Feedback from families
• The suicide prevention strategy refresh, reflecting on the last three years and our aims and ambitions and the future
• Support from R;pple charity exploring the challenges in online harms
Our keynote speaker was Mike Palmer from Three Dads Walking – a team of three dads who have all lost their daughters to suicide, and now walk to raise funds in their memory.

Mike’s reflections on the loss of his 17 year old daughter to suicide during the Covid pandemic highlighted the importance of preventing the loss of life in young people; recognising the lived experience of their loved ones, and the need to explore the impact of isolation, disconnect, adversity and connections in every person.

Our information marketplace featured stalls and information from our partners in the prevention of suicide, including Papyrus Leeds UK, Andy’s Man Club, GAMcare, Creative Minds, and Calderdale and Kirklees Recovery and Wellbeing College.

We also had support from Samaritans Wakefield and Amparo, who deliver suicide bereavement support in South Yorkshire.

Learning and insights from the conference will be used to help our future plans to reduce the loss of life by suicide.