Suicide resources

This page collects together the various suicide resources and related information from across the RCPsych website, as well as selected resources from other organisations.

For patients, carers and general public

Our information leaflet on depression in adults outlines a number of UK-based resources for people needing help right now.

For World Suicide Prevention Day (10 September) in 2021, RCPsych was joined by Dr Alex George to discuss male suicide, social isolation and mental health education.

Young people bereaved by suicide can experience grief in complex and isolating ways, and may find it difficult to know what might help. Coping after suicide loss is a free, open-source guide offering practical and accessible ideas to support young people as they navigate life after loss, alongside signposting to further sources of support.

This resource may be helpful for young people themselves, as well as for organisations and professionals supporting them.

View the 'Coping after suicide loss' resource

This guide was co-designed with young people who have lived experience of suicide bereavement, and was developed​ by the Helix Centre, a lab for design and health within Imperial College London, and in collaboration with UCL Faculty of Brain Sciences.

It was created as part of the Peer support for bereavement in young people project, funded by the Co-operative Foundation’s #iwill Bereavement Fund, and is hosted by the Support After Suicide Partnership.

For psychiatrists

The Suicide Prevention National Transformation Programme aims to reduce the number of deaths by suicide in England by 10% by 2020/21.  

The programme focuses on three of the main priority areas identified in the National Suicide Prevention Strategy:

  • middle-aged men (aged 35-54 years) – who remain at the highest risk of suicide
  • people who use mental health services – who account for around a third of all suicides in England
  • people who have self-harmed – self-harm is the biggest indicator of suicide risk.

The programme section on our website includes a dedicated page of useful resources around suicide and self-harm that are free to access and use. 

This section of our website has been created to support psychiatrists during the difficult time after a patient has died by suicide.

The resources on this page have been developed with the help of a working group consisting of members who have experienced the death of a patient by suicide during their careers.