Introducing our new community-led action research projects
We often say that people in communities are best placed to understand the risk and impact of suicide.
As a result, funding has been made available from the Scottish Government via Penumbra Mental Health, the co-strategic outcome lead for, improving access to compassionate support for anyone affected by suicide to support a programme of community-led action research.
Four different projects have been selected by a panel that included representatives from our Suicide Prevention Scotland Lived & Living Experience Panel, the National Suicide Prevention Advisory Group, and Scottish Community Development Centre (SCDC) who are supporting the participating organisations.
SCDC defines community-led action research as, “a process where the community decides on an issue to be researched, designs and carries out the research, and makes use of the results.
We asked each of the organisations to give us a run through of their outline plans after participating in initial project training.
You’ll be able to learn more via our blog and social channels over the coming months.
Shetland Link Up
Hello! We are Shetland Link Up, an independent Charity up here in the most Northly UK islands. We have been open for 30 years offering support and relief to, and facilitating friendships for, those affected by mental ill health.
We open our drop-in three days a week as well as after drop-in sessions to develop links with other community resources such as guest speakers and offer group outings to promote integration into the wider community to a greater extent.
Through a collaborative and creative approach Shetland Link Up aims to be guided by our clients and peer volunteers sharing their own lived experiences in regard to suicide prevention.
Living in a rural, isolated location and within a small community where “everyone knows everyone” can bring unique challenges, it is hoped our research will reduce barriers and stigma within our communities.
Tony’s Safe Place
At Tony’s Safe Place we take an intersectional approach to helping those struggling with their mental health, addiction, poverty, and trauma.
As such, we propose to host a focus group discussing broad themes we have identified from current literature and our service users that could be contributing to and confounding these issues in residents of Cumbernauld.
From this we would like to create a tailored survey to further investigate prominent themes with the aim of better tailoring and expanding the support we offer to meet the needs of the community we serve.
Rosemount Lifelong Learning
Rosemount Lifelong Learning (RLL) is a charitable organisation situated in Royston, North Glasgow.
The mission at RLL is to increase life chances through learning for children, young people and adults living in the North East and wider Glasgow area.
The main aims of RLL are to alleviate and reduce the pressures of poverty, tackle social exclusion, reduce marginalisation, create community collaboration through lifelong learning opportunities.
By offering an array of free services and programs, RLL empowers individuals from all ages and backgrounds to develop new skills and experiences which not only has positive transformations in their lives but also of their families, which strengthens the community.
RLL are participating in suicide prevention research in collaboration with Suicide Prevention Scotland.
For this project, we will be focusing on a specific community of interest: asylum seekers and refugees within the Glasgow area. Our research methods will include both qualitative and quantitative surveys, as well as individual conversations that will help us form community-led focus groups.
PAPYRUS
PAPYRUS is the national charity dedicated to the prevention of young suicide. We shatter the stigma around suicide and equip young people and their communities with the skills to recognise and respond to suicidal behaviour.
We are going to be focussing our research in the Maryhill area of Glasgow, working with the Maryhill Family Wellbeing Hub and other local organisations.
We are hoping to dig into the relationships between young people with thoughts of suicide and their ‘significant people’ (for example, parents, care givers, etc).
By exploring what these relationships look like, we hope to find out what support is needed for the significant people who care for young people with thoughts of suicide.
We want to establish what support is currently available, what is working for them, and where additional support is needed.
If you are having thoughts of suicide, please reach out for help, speak to someone you trust or call one of these helplines:
- Samaritans — 116 123 or use the online chat at samaritans.org
- Breathing Space — 0800 83 85 87
- NHS 24 mental health hub — 111
- PAPYRUS HOPELINE247 — 0800 068 4141 or text 88247
If you are ever in immediate danger or have the means to cause yourself harm you should dial 999 and request an ambulance.
