Organisations, people, and communities in mid and south Essex are lighting up buildings and landmarks green, as part of the ‘Creating hope through light’ event.
From the 6 to the 12 December, Southend City Beach lights, Porter’s Lodge and the Civic Centre will be lit up green in the hope of raising awareness of suicide prevention and asking Essex residents to take the suicide prevention training, which can be accessed online.
The joint initiative from Mid and South Essex Health and Care Partnership and Thurrock and Brentwood Mind and is part of the #LetsTalkAboutSuicideEssex campaign. It aims to reduce the stigma around talking about suicide and encourages people to take the free online suicide prevention training, as well as highlight the other mental health resources available in mid and south Essex.
The suicide prevention training focuses on three key elements: See, Say, Signpost - See the problem, Say the words, Signpost to support. It gives people the knowledge and the confidence to talk to someone who might be at risk of or thinking about suicide.
Cllr Cheryl Nevin, cabinet member for adult social care and health integration, said: “Southend-on-Sea Borough Council is proud to support this initiative for Suicide Prevention week, because it is necessary to shine a light on difficult topics such as this to properly address these issues in our community. I hope that this starts some conversations about the importance of good mental health, and I encourage as many people as possible to take part in the ‘See, Say, Signpost’ training, so that we are more able to help members of our community in times of need.”
People can take part by joining the social media campaign using the hashtag #CreatingHopeThroughLightEssex, as well as uploading personal messages and videos using the campaign resources available online. You can also follow the campaigns on Instagram @talksuicideessex, Twitter @talksuicidesx and Facebook @letstalkaboutsuicideessex.
For more information on suicide prevention services in the Borough, please visit https://www.southend.gov.uk/suicideprevention.