Getting out in nature and hitting an internal reset button while taking in the sights and working up a sweat is becoming increasingly popular in the UK. As temperatures soar it’s important that you’re equipped with the right gear to put your right foot forward on the trails, so the team at Metro.co.uk decided to put hiking essentials through its paces and what better challenge than Scafell Pike at night? 

Yes, you read that correctly. Several members of the team were gearing up for the challenge, which was to raise money for young suicide prevention charity PAPYRUS, and we tried out everything we could think of from hay fever spray to recovery shoes so you can kit yourself out the right way. 

While we were looking for cool hiking essentials for the summer, we were brutally made aware of the changeable conditions hikers face especially if taking on mountains and long treks even in the UK so we were equipped for the lot. And boy, were we glad that we were.

Let’s face it, hiking gear is not synonymous with style. It’s usually practicality over aesthetics but the market is changing, especially with such a drive for people to get back to nature. We just want to look good while doing it. Is that so hard?

We find out.

Jackets 

Columbia Women’s OutDry Extreme Mesh Waterproof – £225

I went for this one in black and when unpacking was pretty surprised by how cool it was. Was it too cool perhaps? The wet look was a little edgier than the safe matt blacks favoured by hikers. While a fan of the aesthetic, it certainly looked like it would rustle more than most but I can attest that it was the perfect jacket for this hike. It was lightweight but did the heavy-lifting when it came to protection from the elements. It would be my go-to choice for all of my hikes. Connie

DARE2B’S ‘Already Recycled Waterproof’ Jacket – £35.95

It was the perfect thickness, with a small inner layer providing heat without the jacket becoming too heavy. The hood and cuffs of the jacket were both adjustable which I made use of, especially as the rain became almost horizontal during our hike. My only issue with the jacket was the pockets, which had one button holding them shut. It’s a great jacket but perhaps better suited for less strenuous hikes rather than ones that require a lot of additional movement. Kirsten

DARE2B’s Anew Waterproof Jacket – £54.95

As a complete baby in the cold, this jacket was one of five layers I brought with me up Scafell Pike and it was certainly the most important one. It kept my warm clothes dry and the hood rested comfortably around my face without falling off. Jordan

Oex Women’s Fortitude Waterproof Jacket – £88

As a big-busted gal, buying a walking jacket was actually a disheartening process. None of the jackets would do up over my G-cup boobs without having to buy up by several sizes which then meant they wouldn’t fit in other areas. But Oex fit the bill, I went up a size and it not only fit but there was room for a few layers as well. It protected me from all the elements that hit throughout our trek and was light enough to chuck in the bag without an issue once the sun came out and it looks cool too. Would definitely recommend it.

ThruDark Zodiac Jacket – £345

Never mind waterproof – this jacket seems like it’s bulletproof. One of the most stylish elements of my hiking gear, this is also comfortable to wear – really roomy arms and shoulders mean you can fit layers underneath without feeling an unpleasant squeeze under your arms, plus gives real freedom of movement to swing your poles as you clamber up the hill. The hood extends pretty far over the face, giving great protection from the rain. Secure zip pockets, too. I loved this.

Peter Storm Women’s Glide jacket – £45

A light and stylish companion. It’s perfect for a bit of cover without swamping you. The last thing you need is to feel weighed down on your travels, so this is a gem.

Women’s Earth Explorer Waterproof Shell Jacket – £69

I got it in black, probably not a great choice for summer but I wanted to use it beyond the trails and use throughout winter months too, which was just as well as it felt like winter at some points. Despite the fluctuation in weather I was able to keep dry and moving and the breathability made it effortless in warmer temps. I was able to keep my phone in my pockets too without it getting soaked and felt everything was safe by zipping them up. Even though it’s got all of the extra features, the design was cute and simple.

Trousers 

Montane Women’s Pac Plus XT Pants Waterproof Troushttps://montane.com/products/montane-womens-pac-plus-xt-waterproof-pantsers – £170

Thunderstorms had been predicted in the fortnight ahead of our big hike. What better way to set off on a hike than to go from hot temps right to battling the elements on the mountainside in a matter of hours? How totally British, especially when it said it would be 6 degrees but actually would feel like 2 degrees. Fantastic. While the thunderstorms didn’t materialise, I took the lead from our group leader who started chucking on her waterproof trousers just a couple of hours in as the rain got heavier. Warned we would be wet, cold and uncomfortable for hours I didn’t take much convincing. Mine were perfect and literally weathered the storm. Claire

Peter Storm Tempest Waterproof trousers – £33
I was expecting to crunch my way up to the top of the peak sweating into my plastic waterproofs – but these trousers were comfortable and breathable – I managed to hike up for hours at quite a pace without overheating. Crucially, when the heavens opened and it came to putting them on, the zipper and popper at the ankle meant I could pull them on without removing my boots. Completely waterproof – not a drop of water got through – and good pockets too. Deborah

Contur leggings – £59

Billed as a premium brand, the Contur leggings felt it too. The brand, which uses Econyl and ocean plastics as well as recycled cotton as its fabric, has got it spot on with the design, especially from the muscle compression side which was a godsend after the hike. Not too close but supportive for the legs and while they’ve not been put through their paces in the washing machine yet, they feel like they’re super durable and I loved wearing them. Claire

Boody Active High Waist Full Length Leggings – £49.95

I wore these for around 20 hours, setting off from home up to the Lake District right through the hike. Only changing once we were back at the meeting spot. It’s fair to say these leggings were a companion throughout the expedition. I didn’t get a chance to make use of the pockets as the rain meant that these were covered up but the leggings had a welcomed thickness. They would probably be too warm for a summer’s day but the shorts would be a good alternative. The full-length leggings were like a second skin and were comfortable for each step along the way. It makes it even better that these are sustainable and zero-waste too.

Bags 

Columbia Unisex Tandem Trail Backpack – £32.50

Incredibly light rucksack with an easy-to-access roll-top opening. Fits a surprisingly good amount of kit, and has a stretchy front pocket for small extras and side pockets for water bottles. I had to buy a waterproof cover and used dry bags inside for clothing and gadgets. 

Osprey Stratos 36 Backpack – £149

One of my favourite things about this bag was all the hidden compartments which made it really easy to keep track of where everything was. The bag has ergonomic fittings which make it slightly heavier but they also make it very comfortable and easy to carry. Many of these settings are adjustable which really helps to make the bag fit your body perfectly. It also did a good job of keeping my stuff dry in the rain. Jordan

Columbia roll-top rucksack – £56 – 80

I love my backpack. I repeat, I love my backpack. By far the coolest hiking accessory, my Columbia Rolltop Backpack was everything I needed to be and looked the part too. There was plenty of room in it for all of my snacks, of which there were plenty, and kept my spare clothes dry as well. There were different compartments inside as you’d expect to keep your cards, phone and more safe especially if you tackle streams and boulders. The straps were comfy and let’s face it, the design is cool as it can be. I’d use this in my day-to-day and get my money’s worth. 

Tops 

ThruDark Mantra Gilet – £145

I never thought I’d see myself in a fleece, never mind a sleeveless one – but I have to say, it was the perfect companion to my hike. It kept me warm when setting off into the cold and dark, but just right for the descent as the sun came up. It’s cosy too – after a sleepless night,  you want something to snuggle into – and this was it. Again, I loved the roomy zip pockets too – something I found invaluable when juggling so many bits of kit up the mountain. Deborah

Women’s Classic All-Season Merino Base Layer 1/4 Zip – £40

A light layer to make sure I kept warm but didn’t overheat as we powered through our hike. It was just enough and didn’t cause you to get clammy when temperatures were rising either. Claire

Zephyr Merino Wool Base Layer – £60

This was the perfect layer. It felt soft and insulating under my waterproof by night and comfortably cool as I warmed up. The sleeves are loose enough to push up and the fabric is light and non-itchy with bulk or bunching under the arms, making it the ideal item to wear over a thin top or as a base layer. Deborah

Boody Racerback Active Tank – £26.95

As we’re looking to be more eco-conscious it makes sense that we explore more sustainable wear that looks good. Boody hits the brief. The racerback was a light layer, unfortunately, there were only a few rays of sunshine that bookended the hike but this was a great staple to strip down to so we could keep moving comfortably. Working up a sweat in it wasn’t an issue either as bamboo is naturally moisture-wicking, so practical as well as looking great.

Boots and Shoes 

Women’s Snowdon II Walking Boots – £60
When I say these boots were the entire reason I could finish my hike I am not exaggerating. As the boots were new, I (stupidly) thought it would be better to hike in my worn-in running trainers. My feet were (obviously) soaked within a few minutes of starting the walk and I changed into the boots. They were completely waterproof, gave me no blisters despite being fresh out of the box and wonderfully comfortable. I cannot recommend them enough. Jordan

Women’s Moab Speed GORE-TEX X Sweaty Betty – £125 

I’ve been trying to find hiking shoes that are actually stylish for years – something I thought was impossible, until I discovered these Sweaty Betty for Merrell shoes. They tick all my boxes for form and function – they look the part and are incredibly comfortable too. They have a rock plate and toe cap, making them robust enough to protect my feet during hours of scrambling over jagged rocks and bashing up against boulders – and they kept out water from the freezing streams we had to splash through. They are light, seriously well cushioned and have a great grip. With all the other pain that was going on in my body that day, I was so thankful to have comfortable, blister-free and not at all tired feet at the end of my 10-hour hike. Deborah 

OOCANDO Sandal – £80

Now, take this very seriously. What about after your hike? I was lucky enough to try the most hideous shoes that I’ve ever seen but these are now my best friends. Despite a gruelling 10 hours hiking up and then back down again, it’s fair to say that while blister-free, my feet were battered. I was reluctant to be seen in them but it was like a very loving cloud cushion and even meant that I could face taking my dog out on The Long Walk in Windsor the day after. I would always wear this for recovery mode after a big hike. If you can’t quite face the OOCANDO Sandal, the OOFOS leopard print sandals (£60) are the best buy as you’ve got the well-needed cushion but without

Socks 

Jeep cushioned performance socks – £13.99 for pack of four.

I had Jeep’s cushioned performance boot socks, and had packed two pairs in case I needed to change due to the rain forecast. But I never needed to swap them out and used the same pair the entire 10-hour hike quite happily. They regulated the temperature well, and despite the heat early on in our hike my feet never got warm and sweaty. Plus I had no blisters at all by the end of the walk, which is a testament to the teamwork of the Jeep socks and my trusty walking boots! Kirsten 

Smartwool Mountaineer Extra Cushion Crew Socks – £19.59

You might not think it but socks are at the very centre of your happiness if you’re going for a big walk, even in the summer. Keeping your feet dry and cushioned so you’ve not got at friction points are so crucial to whether you’re going to enjoy your experience. My socks were a great choice and my feet will be eternally grateful. While thick for summer day temperatures they are the perfect companion for your boots. Claire

Blisters

Before our trip we distributed blister plasters in advance, fearing the tatters our feet would be left in after such strenuous activity. It didn’t help that our challenge leader was hammering it home in our safety briefing how important it was to flag any hot points on our feet at any point as it could ruin the whole thing. Compeed is a household favourite. If you speak to any hiker, it is a go-to and now I know why. The Compeed Anti Blister Stick was heaven sent and despite 10 gruelling hours, getting up the mountain, over boulders, through streams and down again, there was not one blister in our group. Not one. Compeed for the win. 

Stock up here.

Headtorch 

Peltz Tikka Head Torch – from £19.99

So you might not immediately think ‘I must pack a headtorch’ for a simple day hike but, it helps to be prepared. Of course, we needed one as we knew we were going to tackle a mountain in the dark. But picking up a relatively cheap headtorch just in case something goes wrong is not a bad idea. Despite being so handy, whether that’s guiding you to the toilet on a campsite or helping you scale mountains, these babies are worth every penny. Claire 

LED Head Torch – £5.49

I panicked when I opened my headlamp as it turned out I had not got the required lumen level – it was a 10m range rather than the 40m we were recommended for a night hike. It was actually fine: bright enough to see the ground around me and light and comfortable to wear on my head for the duration. The light itself is directional too, so I could point it at the ground for the ascent and up in the sky when we wanted to snap our mountain selfies (and other crucial mountaineer stuff!) Deborah 

Gloves

Gloves might seem like a bit much for a summer hike, but the Extreme Gloves from Keela (£54.95) came in handy when faced with dropping temperatures and driving rain. It made scrambling across rocks more manageable than having to scrabble with slippery textures. I probably would seek out a less chunky design unless it was going to be super-cold for next time. Claire

This article contains affiliate links. We will earn a small commission on purchases made through one of these links but this never influences our experts’ opinions. Products are tested and reviewed independently of commercial initiatives.

A group of hardy climbers have battled rain, wind and fog as part of Metro’s 2022 Lifeline campaign to raise thousands for charity.

Alongside Metro.co.uk staff and readers, supporters of PAPYRUS Prevention of Young Suicide – including bereaved relatives and friends – came together to reach the summit of England’s highest mountain in an overnight fundraising hike on Saturday.

The group set off at 10.30pm, reaching Scafell Pike’s summit at 4.30am, before returning to ground level as the sun rose over the Lake District.

Many carried with them the memories of loved ones lost to suicide and spoke of the ‘healing process’ the hike provided.

PAPYRUS ambassador, actor Cat White was first to reach the summit and walked in honour of her friend Simon.

Despite the intensity of the challenge, she said ‘adrenaline’ had kept her going, alongside the camaraderie among her fellow hikers.

‘It definitely did feel like Simon was with me,’ she said.

Cat added: ‘When I was asked if I wanted to take part, there wasn’t really any question for me, I just knew I had to do it.

‘Yesterday I kept thinking “I’m not ready, I can’t do this” but adrenaline just kept us going today. I do feel really emotional, I just don’t have words to describe this. It was glorious.’

After the challenge, Cat told us what the walk meant to her – and how ‘proud’ she is to be an ambassador for the charity.

‘I believe that hope is always waiting for us if we can hold on long enough to see it and climbing Scafell Pike overnight with so many others who have lost a loved one to suicide was the greatest reminder of that,’ she said.

‘The conditions were treacherous but we kept on going – which for me, in a way, is a metaphor for life. I am so proud to be an Ambassador for PAPYRUS and I hope that I can inspire other young people to just keep holding on.

‘Dawn always breaks through the darkness if we just keep holding on long enough to see it.’

Conditions atop Scafell Pike were not kind to the hikers, with lashing rain and strong winds making the already difficult ascent extra taxing.

The group also spent hours bouldering, using their hands and feet at points to crawl over jagged and uneven rocks that had been made slippery by the rain.

As the adventurers struggled to keep their balance, some joked it was like ‘an elaborate game of Twister’ or ‘interpretive dance’.

Andy Airey and Mike Palmer, walking in memory of their daughters Sophie and Beth, carried PAPYRUS flags the entire way as a constant reminder of the cause at hand.

The pair make up two thirds of the ‘3 Dads Walking’ group.

Not only do they raise huge amounts for charity, but they also highlight the impact getting outdoors can have on mental health.

Andy, a trustee for PAPYRUS, said: ‘Growing up in the Lake District, it’s something I suppose I knew all along – but the first walking challenge I did with 3 Dads Walking really brought it home.

‘It’s so important to walk and talk, and to do it outdoors.

‘Sitting opposite each other at a table, it’s sometimes hard to talk about personal things – but walking side by side, it’s easier to be honest and to share – and it really does save lives.’

Intrepid hikers returned back from Scafell Pike from around 7.30am onwards on Sunday, greeted by huge cheers and claps from Charity Challenge teams who had prepared a large breakfast.

For many of the participants, it was only then that the sheer scale of their achievement began to sink in.

Allan Graham and Kate Bates had laced up their boots for Kate’s daughter Grace, who they lost to suicide.

The 17-year-old had seeking counselling, but over stretched services meant she hadn’t received any professional support prior to her death.

The couple had carried Grace’s ashes with them to the summit.

‘I’m very proud,’ said Kate.

‘This has been so challenging, but so incredible. The camaraderie overnight has been out of this world.

‘I’m not sure it’s sunk in what we’ve done. But it’s been a healing process.

‘We’re both thrilled to have met everyone, the PAPYRUS team too, and so proud to have been able to do this.

‘We did this to help others and to spread Grace’s love, and it was a fitting time and place to spread some of her ashes.’

Upon finishing their hike, weary walkers gathered in the Sticklebarn, near the base of Scafell Pike, for final emotional farewells before heading to their homes around the UK.

Sarah Petherbridge had taken part in memory of her son Zak, who she lost to suicide when he was 18.

He had hidden his intense struggle with mental health from friends and family and died three weeks after starting university.

Sarah had been joined on the hike by Debbie Taylor, who explained she didn’t want her friend to have to walk alone.

The pair had different walking paces, but made sure to reunite for the final half hour so they could complete the hike together.

‘I don’t know what to say,’ said Sarah through tears upon finishing the gruelling nine-hour feat.

‘I am definitely so proud, and I’m so glad that Debbie came.

‘I hate the fact I have a reason to do this and, like always, it’s going to be hard to go home without him there. But I’m proud, really proud.’

Many on the overnight hike exchanged memories of their loved ones – and within hours had gone from strangers to friends.

Paige Winter, from London, described the feat as ‘one of the hardest challenges’ she’d ever done.

The 30-year-old had been invited on the climb by a friend, and was eager to take part in a bid to help defeat the stigma that still remains for many about talking about mental health.

Paige said: ‘It’s such a worthy charity and such a worthy cause.

‘It was really special having so many like-minded people around. It’s been such a challenge but it’s just such an amazing feeling.’

Other participants included friends Polly Maclennan and Amy Trevan, who had only registered for the hike last week.

They had raised £1,000 in record time ahead of Saturday’s hike and spoke of their ‘celebratory moment’ at the summit.

So far, almost £25,000 have been raised by those who took part, which will help fund the incredibly important work the charity does.

Before the group dispersed, PAPYRUS’s head of fundraising Hazel Russell thanked all those who took part, adding: ‘You’ve saved someone’s life today, thank you.’

Among the hiking team was Metro.co.uk editor Deborah Arthurs and deputy editor Claire Eaton-Rutter, who were joined by reporters and by staff from MailMetroMedia.

Talking about the decision to support the charity as part of this year’s Lifeline campaign, Deborah said: ‘It was an emotional night – and it was a seriously tough one too.

‘The lack of sleep, harsh weather and the terrain made it a real mental and physical challenge. We had to lean on each other – sometimes literally – to make it to the top.

‘Huge respect to all the brilliant walkers who joined us, who shared their stories, their snacks (we were powered by homemade tiffin and stinging nettle seeds) and their support.

‘Supporting PAPYRUS was so important, both to me personally and to all of our team at Metro.

‘Suicide is the biggest killer of young people under 35 and mental health is a topic that touches all of us.

‘Talking with people on the walk – including so many who had lost daughters, sons, friends and family members to suicide – really brings home how important it is for us to talk – to share our stories, to have difficult conversations that change lives and inspire each other.

There’s still time to donate to Papyrus, and you can do so by clicking here.

And to read further stories from the Lifeline Campaign, you can follow this link.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

MORE : Two mums who lost their children to suicide share why they’re helping raise thousands for charity

MORE : ‘We need to talk about child suicide – it’s heartbreaking I didn’t know my daughter was so unhappy’

MORE : My son took his own life in lockdown – as a parent, you can’t help but feel guilty

Sajid Javid has created a ‘seismic shift’ in the discussion surrounding mental health, campaigners say.

The health secretary has been working with charity PAPYRUS to encourage more people to speak out when they’re struggling.

Last year alone, there were more than 5,000 suicides in England. Suicide remains the biggest cause of death in men under the age of 50.

Mr Javid’s own brother, Tariq, took his own life in 2018.

Speaking openly about the tragedy this week, the health secretary told The Sunday Times: ‘We learned afterwards that he had a physical health problem that he hadn’t told anyone about . . . and if we had just known, if he had talked to us, perhaps we could have done something.

‘So you think about that. Maybe I could have made a difference. And I guess I will never know the answer to that.’

The traumatic experience encouraged him to take the time to reach out to friends and family, especially during the pandemic, and be aware of the early signs of a mental health struggle.

Campaigners hope that Mr Javid’s comments will empower others to reach out to loved ones and discuss mental health.

The health secretary’s speech, at a Papyrus event in London, was described as a ‘game-changer’ by the charity’s chief executive.

Ged Flynn said: ‘A senior, serving minister in the government sharing his experience of losing his own brother Tariq to suicide four years ago was public exposure of deeply personal and private pains

‘The significance of his speech cannot be overstated. It was a seismic shift in the societal conversation.

‘When somebody in such a high-profile position of leadership in our country dares to break the silence around suicide and links that to their own personal story, stigma is reduced.

‘Sajid Javid said that “keeping quiet can kill.” Many stay silent, suffering privately with thoughts of ending their own lives. We want people to speak about and ask about suicide, seek help and find it.’

Mr Javid was at the London offices of PAPYRUS to announce a new strategy for England which will focus on reducing suicides.

The government’s new 10-year-plan will explore a new surveillance programme that will look out for patterns that put people at risk and look into the effect of social media.

Ahead of Mr Javid’s speech he attended a round table event at which key stakeholders in suicide prevention shared their ideas for the new action plan.

During his visit, the politician held a private meeting with parents bereaved by suicide including Harry Biggs-Davison, the chair of trustees at Papyrus, whose son Patrick took his own life. He also met Philip Pirie whose son Tom died by suicide.

Mr Flynn added: ‘Government has recognised its own responsibility to prioritise suicide prevention and support for those who need it.

‘Like the Secretary of State, PAPYRUS refuses to be silent. Sajid Javid’s brave speech is a game-changer.

‘It must now be matched with a brave, ambitious action plan which impels all parties, all government departments, all communities and every citizen to play their part.’

PAPYRUS is marking 25 years since it was founded by a group of bereaved parents.

This Saturday, a group will be trekking up the Lake District’s Scafell Pike in a bid to raise both funds and awareness for the charity.

They’ll be doing it as part of this year’s Metro.co.uk Lifeline campaign, which is raising money for PAPYRUS.

The team is made up of Metro readers and charity supporters, including those who have been personally affected by the loss of a loved one to suicide.

You can read their stories here.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

Around 11pm on July 2, a group of people will be taking their first steps up a rocky trail in the Lake District towards the summit of England’s highest mountain, Scafell Pike, in the dark. 

They’ll be doing it as part of this year’s Metro.co.uk Lifeline campaign, which is raising money for PAPYRUS Prevention of Young Suicide.

Among them will be Metro readers and staff, as well as supporters of the charity, and its team. 

There are many reasons people have signed up to this amazing challenge. Here, bereaved father Andy Airey shares why he’s doing it. 

‘It was December 2018 and my family and I were looking forward to Christmas. 

Our daughter, Sophie, 29, was living in Edinburgh and due to come home on the 20th, after she finished her last shift of the year, at the hospital where she worked as a nurse.

We’d all been making plans about what we were going to do over the festive period and me, Sophie and my son, Gregor, had a skiing trip booked in January. 

On the evening of the 19th, the night before we were due to have Sophie back home, we got a message on our family WhatsApp group. It read: ‘I love you all so much.’ 

While it’s not unusual for our family to express love for each other, there was something about that message that just didn’t sit right with us. 

I phoned Sophie and it went straight to voicemail. I then phoned my ex-wife (Sophie’s mum), George. She said that she’d just had a call from Sophie’s husband, saying that he’d had a text from Sophie to say, ‘I’m sorry that I’ve messed up your life.’ And stating that she was going to take her own life. 

She ended the message with ‘please don’t bury me.’ 

Her husband had phoned the police before calling George – and they started searching for Sophie straightaway. They found her car quickly, but it took three days to find her body.

As they searched, there’s no way to describe how I was feeling other than it was a complete blur. It was horrible. There was nothing else we could think about. My body was in a state of shock and the waiting was so difficult, as we didn’t know what the outcome was going to be. 

We were completely in limbo. 

Sophie went missing on Wednesday, and we went up to Edinburgh while the police looked for her. On Saturday, we got a call to say that they had found her. 

We were shattered, crushed, devastated. We’d known that she’d been upset after her relationship breakdown but, from the outside, it had looked like a normal reaction to a marriage ending. It didn’t seem out of the ordinary, and the fact that she’d got a new flat and a new job all pointed towards things getting better, and her planning for the future. 

She didn’t let any of us know how she had been feeling – if she had, we would have done everything in our power to help her. 

Right from the moment we found out we had lost Sophie, the whole family started talking about trying to help other people who might find themselves in the same situation. 

We cried a lot, then agreed that we wanted – and needed – to pull something positive out of this wreck. To help ourselves, and others. 

Soph was born in 1989. She was a lovely little girl who grew up into a mature, sociable and entertaining person. She was one of those people you were always happy to see, she brought a real spark of light into every room she walked into.

Me and her mum split up when she was three or four, but I always spent a lot of time with her. We’d go out walking together, in the North Lakes, where I lived. As she got older, she was a great laugh and a real pleasure to be with. 

After volunteering in Kenya for four months, working with orphans, Sophie came home and said she wanted to go to uni and study to become a nurse. This was a perfect career for her, as she was so caring and empathetic. She then went to Manchester for her degree and absolutely loved it. 

After university, she got together with the man who would become her husband. They ended up in Edinburgh together, she had a great job, and they got married in 2017. 

From the outside, life looked great. 

Then, in September of 2018, Sophie announced that she was leaving her husband, and that she didn’t love him anymore. It was a shock to us all but, of course, we supported her decision.

Over the next couple of months, she was very emotional – but we never for a second considered that she was contemplating suicide. 

After we lost Sophie, the vicar in our village came to visit us. I always remember him telling us that people say time is a great healer – but, in these circumstances, it’s not. He explained that we’ll always carry the grief of losing our daughter, and we’ll always have a Sophie shaped hole in our lives. But, over time, we’ll find things that help protect us from that gaping hole. And, over time, it will all become more insulated. That advice stuck with me.

I didn’t realise at the time, but that’s exactly what we’ve done. By helping other people in a similar situation, or to help stop more people going down that route – and, ultimately, saving lives, we’ve protected ourselves from the grief. 

After Sophie’s death, we decided that we wanted to support a suicide charity. I discovered PAPYRUS Prevention of Young Suicide, and was struck by the amazing work they do. 

The first time I looked at their website, I came across the statistic that suicide is the biggest killer of under 35s in the UK. I couldn’t believe that we weren’t doing more to raise awareness of it – and to stop it. 

So we decided to get involved, and raise money for the charity. 

Sophie had signed up for a half marathon with her friend Laura, before she died. I decided that I would run in Sophie’s place, and donate all money raised to PAPYRUS. We ended up raising over £40,000. 

Since then, I’ve taken part in several fundraising activities, usually revolving around walking. I’ve also set up 3 Dads Walking with two other dads, Mike and Tim, who have also gone through the heartbreak of losing their daughters to suicide. Our aim is to raise money and awareness, and – most importantly – get people talking. 

I’m now a trustee of PAPYRUS and I’m excited to take part in the Lifeline walk up Scafell Pike, on July 2nd. I was born in the Lake District, and I’ve walked it my whole life – the fact that this event is happening here is incredible.  

One thing we know for sure is that if we raise awareness and talk about suicide, lives will be saved. For anyone who is struggling, or having thoughts of ending their life, the PAPYRUS helpline, called HOPELINKUK is there – and at the end of that line, trained mental health professionals who are caring, empathic and knowledgeable. 

We had absolutely no idea that Sophie was feeling this way.  We don’t know whether she knew about PAPYRUS or not – but if my daughter had been made aware of it when she was younger maybe she could have reached out in that time of crisis, rather than turning to suicide. 

We’re now campaigning to have suicide prevention added to the school curriculum. We need to make a change. And, in the meantime, we’ll continue to do all we can to raise money and get people talking about suicide.

If it saves just one life, and stops a family going through what we’ve been through, it will all be worth it.’

Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing Claie.Wilson@metro.co.uk 

Share your views in the comments below.

MORE : ‘The grief will never go – but talking about it makes you realise you’re not alone’

MORE : Metro Lifeline: Join actor Cat White on a night-time adventure and help raise money for suicide charity PAPYRUS

MORE : Metro.co.uk Lifeline: ‘My son was a bright, shining light. I’d assumed our bond would keep him safe’

Fun-loving and talented Beth Palmer had just secured a record contract when she took her own life in the first week of lockdown, in March 2020. 

Described lovingly by her father as being a popular, creative and funny girl, 17-year-old Beth’s family believe that she became lost in a ‘fog of despair’ after her college was closed during lockdown and all her dreams for the near future were shattered.  

‘Beth absolutely loved college,’ remembers her dad, Mike. ‘She loved going out, she loved her friends. She was starting to gig and was going to festivals. All these things were cancelled and we think that the lockdown played a massive part. Maybe Beth was struggling before, but I think lockdown made her bucket overflow.

‘We’re a close family. We did talk. But maybe not about the right things. It breaks my heart that she felt as though she couldn’t come to her mum, to myself, to her sisters, and say that she was struggling.

‘If you looked at us from the outside, you’d see a popular family. We’ve got loads of friends and we always had people round, family coming in, lots going on. We were buzzing. You would never have put suicide and Beth in the same sentence. You just wouldn’t.’

Beth, who lived with her family in Sale, was a teenager who had everything to live for. She had lots of friends, was talented, confident and well-loved. She was also an adept performer; ‘a singer and dancer on stage and always a comedian off it’, according to dad, Mike, a firefighter.

‘Losing Beth to suicide made me feel as though I had been demolished,’ he tells Metro.co.uk. ‘Devastation is a word that springs to mind – but it’s too small.

‘It’s beyond belief. In Beth’s case we never saw she was struggling. In hindsight we can look back and maybe pick up clues, in language, in the way she was acting – but we never saw it coming up. People often say it is devastating, but it is beyond that.’

Lockdown meant the family couldn’t grieve properly – Beth’s mother couldn’t even hug her own parents. But while only nine people were permitted at her funeral, the streets were lined with hundreds of people who applauded the teenager’s memory. 

Just over two years on, Mike describes how it’s a loss that still overwhelms the Palmers. ‘The battle never stops. It is hard to get out of bed sometimes,’ he explains. ‘I struggled massively. In some ways, it’s a surprise I’m still here, but I am.’ 

In a bid to do something to prevent other families from experiencing the same pain, Mike joined forces with two other bereaved dads, Tim Owen and Andy Airey, who lost their daughters Emily and Sophie to suicide. 

Together they walked 300 miles last year, in a fundraising effort that took them from Andy’s home in Cumbria, to Mike’s home in Greater Manchester and on to Tim’s in Norfolk. 

The fathers carried their daughters’ names in their hearts and their photos in their hands, and spoke to people along the way about grief. ‘3 Dads Walking’, as the trio is now known, aims to smash the stigma around suicide, and raise money for the national charity PAPYRUS Prevention of Young Suicide.

Mike explains how they’d hoped to raise around £3,000 each but surpassed this spectacularly, so far managing to raise more than £800,000. They have attracted donations from Hollywood stars Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig and footballer Lou Macari, whose own son Jonathan died by suicide in 1999. 

Thanks to this cash, PAPYRUS’ Hopeline UK will begin to run 24-hours a day later this year. Mike believes that had Beth known about the helpline, she may still be here. 

‘One of the biggest dangers to our young people is themselves because suicide is the biggest killer of under 35s in the UK. Why are we not talking about this?,’ he asks.

‘3 Dads Walking’ promote open, honest and supportive conversation. It is massively important to talk about mental health. It’s important to talk about suicide. We really do appreciate that it is so hard sometimes to talk about how you are feeling. But we want young people to have these life skills to be able to look after themselves. 

‘Having conversations about suicide is so hard, because of all the stigma. It’s a taboo subject. I get that. But it’s so important that it is talked about. And I do believe if Beth had known how to reach out, if she knew where to go, things would be very, very different.’ 

Mike, along with Andy, will also be taking on Metro.co.uk’s Lifeline challenge next month, climbing Scafell Pike at night to help raise funds for PAPYRUS. 

Reflecting, Mike believes that Beth was possibly suffering from depression, but he didn’t realise it at the time. Like all teenagers, she could be quiet, and spend a lot of time in her room.

‘We didn’t have those skills as a family to realise [she was struggling],’ he says. ‘That week she’d been funny, she’d been laughing. She’d been out in the garden and going for runs. 

‘Maybe she was getting unhappier through the week. I will always blame myself for not noticing, not reading that she was in a bad place. Beth did say “I’m having a bad day”. But did she really mean to do it? Was it a mixture of things that just pushed her into it, on the spur of the moment? There is only one person that knows, and that’s Beth.’ 

Mike wants others to learn to talk about mental health, so those that are experiencing suicidal thoughts don’t feel so alone. He appears, alongside other bereaved family members, in videos published by PAPYRUS, to help people who are struggling with suicidal thoughts. 

To My Fellow also features fellow Lifeline trekker and PAPYRUS ambassador, actor Cat White, as well as videos of a faith leader, an artist, a migrant and a counsellor, each delivering a personal message. 

Helen, a mother, tells how one of her three children started having suicidal thoughts at the age of 14. Thanks to the continuing support of the family, her daughter went on to university, has a professional career and is busy making a life for herself.

Mike adds: ‘I would always push for parents, anyone, to be aware and to be able to pick up on signs and language. Are they saying “I’ve had enough” or “I don’t want to be here”? Teenagers say things every day, but sometimes people need to pay attention.

‘My advice to parents is equip your children and yourselves to deal with poor mental health and be aware that sometimes it creeps up on you.

‘They say every suicide affects 140 people. The ripples hit people at different different angles; there’s the close family, there’s friends, colleagues, even just people who hear the story. They’re all affected by it. And some of them are affected very badly. If you’re affected by suicide, you’ve got more chance of taking your own life. I agree with that, 100%.

‘More than 200 schoolchildren a year die by suicide. But we believe that many of these can be prevented. Suicide is a hard word and schools don’t seem to want to broach it because they think if you mention it, it will happen. But that’s not the case.’

Mike now devotes his time to promoting open conversations about suicide. He has been meeting with government ministers in a bid to get suicide onto the curriculum for primary and secondary school. He continues to raise cash, delivers talks and lectures and has another walk planned for September which will see them walking between the parliaments of the four nations. 

He finds the walking, and the new friendship with Andy and Tim, a real comfort. And talking helps him enormously. 

‘The grief will never go – it ebbs and flows now,’ he adds. ‘It’s been over two years, but life at times is very, very difficult. Talking makes you realise you aren’t alone. There’s always hope.’

Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing Claie.Wilson@metro.co.uk 

Share your views in the comments below.

MORE : Metro Lifeline: Join actor Cat White on a night-time adventure and help raise money for suicide charity PAPYRUS

MORE : Two mums who lost their children to suicide share why they’re helping raise thousands for charity

MORE : ‘I set up a suicide prevention charity to stop other families from suffering like us’

It was a quiet day in January when actor Cat White got a WhatsApp message that irrevocably changed her life. 

It was a message sent to a group of friends that was so shocking, and so unbelievable that Cat, 27, felt her body go physically ‘numb’ upon reading it. 

The news was that one of her close friends from drama school, Simon, had taken his life – causing her to experience a visceral emotional response.  

‘I can recall all the tiny details of that day,’ she tells Metro.co.uk. ‘I remember being so aware of my exact surroundings when that message came through. I know the exact time – it was just gone 11am. For the longest time I couldn’t take it in. I was in this weird, numb limbo.  

‘At some point, I just really broke down. It was such, such a shock. There are no words for how I felt.’ 

Like many people, Simon had not been open about his mental health struggles, says Cat, instead he disguised his troubles with humour and warmth. 

‘We met at drama school,’ she explains. ‘He was definitely the joker of the class. Simon was the funny one, he would always be in the corner making sarcastic comments. He was an incredible musician and artist.

‘But he was a really gentle soul, so sensitive and someone you could go to if you had anything you needed to talk about. It felt like he would always listen and really care about what he had to say.’ 

While Cat regularly spoke to Simon through phone calls, WhatsApp and Zoom, she last saw him in person in December 2019, a year and a month before he took his own life in January last year. 

‘I think a lot of us in our friendship group kept jumping back to when we last spoke to him,’ Cat recalls. ‘We were asking ourselves whether we had checked in enough. But then I’d also say he wasn’t someone that never felt or seemed unwell.’ 

Remembering how she felt in the aftermath of her friend’s death, Cat says, ‘At first, I couldn’t feel like I could even breathe. I just couldn’t do anything.  

‘I didn’t know how to talk to someone about it or how to handle it. My family were so worried about me and everyone wanted to make sure I was okay, and I just couldn’t find the words. The loss seemed to be beyond all comprehension. 

‘I didn’t want to be alive anymore after hearing about Simon’s suicide. I later found out that the highest statistics from people who take their own life is someone who lost someone to suicide – which is so shocking in a way because you’d think someone would never do that knowing how much it hurts everyone you left behind. But I totally get it, because it puts everything in perspective.  

‘You’re so young, you think how can someone with everything to live for not want to be here anymore? It makes you think about your own life in that way.’ 

Cat explains that she and her friendship group also struggled to express their grief to one another adequately. 

‘I felt like I could sort-of speak to friends that knew Simon, but as everyone was going through their own grieving process, I felt like I didn’t want to be a burden on anyone at that time,’ she admits. ‘It was such a weird and dark time. As we were in lockdown, we were having nightly Zoom calls, which could last for hours where no-one says anything. It was just a really weird and dark time for us all.’ 

After an ongoing struggle to comprehend the gravity of her friend’s death, Cat decided to reach out to PAPYRUS Prevention of Young Suicide, a charity Simon’s parents had chosen to raise funds for, to try and come to terms with her loss. 

‘PAPYRUS has just such an ethos of hope,’ she explains. ‘I think that was the other thing I was struggling with, I felt so alone and I didn’t know who else this had happened to. 

‘It was something about feeling connected to other people who had been there and then come out the other end and lived to tell the tale. Their podcast called HOPECAST really helped. They also have their HOPELINEUK where you can just ring and speak to someone, which I knew I needed. 

‘While at first I just wanted to get some support from them, I soon realised that I wanted to raise money for the charity too,’ adds Cat. ‘I didn’t know what it would look like, but I just desperately wanted to be connected with their work.’ 

Cat made the decision to do something ‘drastic’: cold water swimming. ‘It became this really healing thing and I turned my experiences into a short film titled Fifty-Four Days,’ she says. ‘In it I really focus on what overwhelming grief looks like, but there’s also focus on healing and a girl who starts cold water swimming, because that for me saved my life. 

‘I want my film to be about hope and supporting each other,’ she adds. ‘I want it to be helpful for those left behind.’ 

Since then, not only have PAPYRUS become an official partner of her film project, but Cat has also become an ambassador for the charity and will be joining our Metro.co.uk Lifeline challenge in July this year, which involves climbing England’s highest mountain, Scafell Pike, at night.  

She tells Metro.co.uk that she believes the climb, which is to raise funds for PAPYRUS, will help with her grieving process. 

‘I think it sounds so inspiring,’ says Cat. ‘Arriving at the top of the mountain as the sun rises, it seems like such a beautiful metaphor. It makes me emotional even thinking about it. But I think there’s something powerful about all of us climbing together in support of PAPYRUS and doing this challenge. 

‘Being physical works for me in terms of getting out of my own head, so I’m really excited about that, and I think it sounds like an incredible challenge. It feels hopeful, like this is going to be a really important part of my grief journey.’ 

Alongside her work with PAPYRUS, Cat has to juggle her acting career (recently starring in Ten Per Cent, the British version of Call My Agent!) and her work with the UN, where she works as a gender advisor.  

Having also made Forbes List of 30 Under 30 this year for her work with her production company, Kusini Productions – which aims to champion the voices of Black women and girls – Cat acknowledges she has a lot on her plate. 

However, as someone who now works as an advocate for mental health awareness, she knows she needs to take time out for herself. 

‘Burn out is real and I’m having a few moments where I thought, okay, I am close to capacity and I think that’s something I need to bear in mind with my work with PAPYRUS,’ she explains. ‘I don’t want to say take care of yourself when I don’t do it myself. 

‘It’s so important to take time for yourself. Swimming and running are my happy places. I need to practice what I preach.’ 

Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing Kimberley.Bond@metro.co.uk 

Share your views in the comments below.

MORE : ‘I lost my daughter to suicide – I’ll cry every day for the rest of my life’

MORE : Two mums who lost their children to suicide share why they’re helping raise thousands for charity

MORE : ‘We don’t need to be isolated’ – Woman who started jogging to cope with brother’s suicide launches mental health running group

To all who knew him, Zak Petherbridge was a normal, happy and funny teenager at the beginning of a bright university career.

When his mother received the news that he had taken his own life at his halls of residence at the age 18, she – along with all his friends and family – was shocked and devastated.

‘At no point in Zak’s life were there any signs of anxiety or mental ill health. He was intelligent, funny, well-loved, kind and thoughtful with a busy social life, part time job, a loving family and a huge group of friends,’ Sarah, Zak’s mother, tells Metro.co.uk.

But in the early hours of Thursday 15th October 2020, Sarah was woken from her sleep by banging on her front door. She assumed it was Zak coming home unexpectedly from Newcastle where he was living. She pulled on a dressing gown, climbed down the stairs and looked through the window. When she saw two police officers on the doorstep, she knew something was terribly wrong.

‘I opened the door with the most overwhelming feeling of dread inside me,’ she remembers. ‘I asked them if it was about my son.

‘They asked to come in. They said he was “deceased”. I remember thinking it was a really weird word to use. I asked how and why. 

‘The officer filled up when she had to tell me that he’d taken his own life. She told me: “That’s the worst part”. I said: “You must have the wrong person. He wouldn’t ever, ever do that.”’

Sarah, 52, screamed and broke down. Her daughter, Freya, now 14, barricaded the door in her bedroom as she didn’t know what the commotion was downstairs. When Sarah told her the news, ‘Freya was destroyed’, she says, describing how close the two were.

Family members were contacted and friends sprung into action. Around Sarah, everyone mobilised, making the decisions that she couldn’t.

‘In the midst of this activity, I remember crying, screaming, saying over and over that I just wanted him to come home, that it was too much to bear, that I couldn’t do it,’ she recalls. ‘I felt like I was suffocating and could hardly breathe.’

The night before, everything had seemed fine when Zak and Sarah had been texting. He’d just started a new job at a supermarket and told her he was getting used to it, that his colleagues were lovely and college work was going well.

‘I actually wrote: “Are you happy with your life up there?” And he replied: “Yeah, I am.”’

The pair told each other they loved each other, and ended the chat.

‘Then he was gone’, Sarah, from Royston, South Yorkshire, tearfully recounts. ‘I’ve lost both my parents and a brother. I thought I understood grief. This is like nothing on earth.

‘Losing a child is the worst kind of grief that you can ever experience, and losing a child to suicide is like that grief with the volume turned up. He was such a special boy. He was funny, kind and thoughtful. He was so loved. A bright, shining light. We were incredibly close and I’d assumed our bond would keep him safe.’

Sarah is now speaking out in a bid to help others who have been bereaved in the same way, and to help remove the stigma around suicide, in the hope that people who are struggling feel able to talk about it. Along with PAPYRUS, a charity fighting to prevent young suicide, Sarah wants to raise awareness.

She says: ‘There had been no indication that this would happen. Nothing. He’d had a really great life. He always seemed happy and so together.

‘Even in hindsight, there is nothing to suggest the way he was feeling. He was working, he was at university where he wanted to go, Zak was doing what he wanted to do. He had a wide circle of friends, he was busy during lockdown. He never missed a day of work, he was never even late for work. He was incredibly intelligent. He just had a really bright future and a family who loved him dearly.

‘I’ve realised since losing Zak, if it could happen to my family, and my boy, it literally could happen to anyone.’

Before he took his life, Zak left a deeply personal letter addressed to his mum and sister, explaining that he had been struggling with feelings of isolation and emptiness.

‘He said in his letter that when he was with me and his sister he felt able to push aside how he was feeling, but being without us up there had brought everything crashing down for him. It didn’t help that he was in isolation [due to Covid].

‘One of the hardest things I’ve struggled with is the thought that my child didn’t want to be alive. But one of the things I’ve learnt since is that it’s not that he didn’t want to be alive; he just didn’t want to be in pain.’

Sarah concludes that Zak must have been suffering from depression, but that he didn’t recognise it. He’d never sought help from his doctor, and had never spoken to friends about how he truly felt.

‘Zak might not have understood that was why he was feeling the way he was. In theory he had everything, he had his uni place, lots of friends, a job, a bright future, an incredibly loving family. He could have been thinking “Why do I feel like this when I’ve got everything?”

‘There isn’t one thing that you can put right to make you stop feeling like that. And somewhere along the line it got worse, and was left unaddressed. He’d not spoken to anyone about it, who would have told him to go to the GP, possibly get some anti-depressants or mental health support.’

This is why it is so imperative for Sarah that parents talk about suicide to their kids, that friends don’t feel afraid to talk about it with each other.

‘I worry that the stigma around suicide leads to young people feeling that they can’t reach out,’ she explains. ‘It makes them too ashamed to talk about how they are feeling. I will never be able to reconcile what Zak has done with the person that I knew.

‘The way that he hid that struggle, the way he functioned and continued to engage in every aspect of his life, that will never cease to amaze me. He and I were incredibly close, he knew he could come to me about anything, and he did come to me about most things. And I just wonder why he didn’t come to me about this.

‘So we need to talk about suicide. Say the word. I wonder if I had ever said to Zak, “Do you ever feel so sad that you might not want to be here?”, that could have been an opener for him. But for some reason we’re so frightened of saying it.

‘We need to ask our kids: “Have you ever felt like that? Does that sound like something you could identify with?” And just open up those lines of conversation. Don’t wait for them to seem not okay before having those difficult words.

‘We need to be having those conversations, even when everything seems okay.’

Sarah says that since Zak died she has been to some very ‘dark places’, but somehow she has managed to keep putting one foot in front of the other. She keeps busy now – aside from her work as a screening and immunisation coordinator for NHS England, she reads a lot, writes, walks ten miles a day and visits Zak’s grave regularly, tending to it and keeping it nice.

‘I spend a lot of time with him. I talk to him a lot. I know that he wouldn’t want me to give up.’

And in July, Sarah, along with other bereaved family members and supporters, will climb England’s highest mountain, Scafell Pike, by moonlight, as part of Metro.co.uk’s 2022 Lifeline Campaign, in support of the young person suicide prevention charity, PAPYRUS.

She says Zak will be with her for the challenge. ‘We walked and climbed a lot as a family,’ Sarah explains.

‘Zak loved walking up mountains and getting to the top. We climbed Ben Nevis and Helvellyn – we never did Scafell Pike together, though.

‘He had a trip planned to the Lakes and he never got to go on it. So I will feel him with me on that climb.’

Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing Kimberley.Bond@metro.co.uk 

Share your views in the comments below.

MORE : Two mums who lost their children to suicide share why they’re helping raise thousands for charity

MORE : ‘I lost my daughter to suicide – I’ll cry every day for the rest of my life’

MORE : ‘I set up a suicide prevention charity to stop other families from suffering like us’

They’ll be doing it as part of this year’s Metro.co.uk Lifeline campaign, which is raising money for PAPYRUS Prevention of Young Suicide.

Among them will be Metro readers and staff, as well as supporters of the charity, and its team. 

There are many reasons people have signed up to this amazing challenge, and we wanted to share them.

Here, two of our trekkers share their incredibly heartbreaking stories behind why they are heading to the Lake District with us to climb a mountain at midnight. 

I just remember giving her a kiss and a cuddle, all the while thinking “this can’t be real”

Kate Bates, 44, administrative assistant, Northumberland

It was a Friday night. I ate pizza and watched a movie with my oldest daughter, 17-year-old Grace. At the end of the evening, we said ‘I love you’ and went to bed. 

The next morning, I got up and went to work. I didn’t see Grace before I went but I had a text conversation with her that morning and we agreed that I’d pick up an Indian takeaway on my way back, to have for dinner. Our conversation was normal. 

It was when I got home at 4.30pm and walked into the kitchen that I found Grace. She had taken her own life. I knew immediately she had been gone for several hours, it was too late.

I phoned an ambulance and lay on the floor hugging her, sobbing. 

How can I describe Grace? She was just awesome; a happy, smiley person who everyone loved. She was a talented artist and what I would describe as a magical person. She attracted animals everywhere she went; she was like Dr Dolitttle and they’d flock to her. I was incredibly proud of my daughter – she worked in an ice cream bar where we lived and I used to have people complimenting me in the street, about what a lovely girl she was. 

When the paramedics arrived that day, and hooked her up to a machine, I remember watching in horror, waiting for it to start beeping, to signify life – but it never did. 

The  next thing I knew, the house was swamped and it automatically became a crime scene, meaning that I wasn’t allowed back in to see my baby girl. The paramedics and police were there for hours. No film I’ve ever seen depicts the true craziness and horror.  

I remember the flashes of the camera as they took photos, but not much else. I didn’t realise it at the time but I was in shock. I cried and screamed for hours after but not a single tear came out of my eyes, as it didn’t even feel real. 

Even when they were taking her away, they invited me into the back of the ambulance to say goodbye. I just remember giving her a kiss and a cuddle, all the while thinking ‘this can’t be real, this can’t be happening to us.’

It’s been three years and I still have moments like that now. Some days I still wake up and think it’s not real. And just the other day, a good friend came round to see me and just hugged me while I cried. It’s still hard to accept that Grace has really gone. I remember hearing about other people losing family members to suicide and feeling so sorry for them, and now it’s happened to me. 

But it’s not just me – my youngest daughter Abbie, who was 11 at the time and is now 14, has lost her big sister. The person that she’d mess around with, wind up, laugh with, learn about make up from – they loved each other so much and Grace was an amazing, protective big sister. 

Abbie was staying with her dad when it happened. How do you tell an 11 year old that her sister has taken her own life? I just remember telling her that Grace’s head was poorly and that she didn’t want to be living here any more. But Abbie is autistic and she wanted facts – so I had to go into quite a bit of detail with her, to help her understand. This was difficult but also strangely cathartic. 

We lost Grace on April 6th, 2019. The autumn before that she’d gone to the doctor to ask for help, and had been given medication – it was confirmed at the post mortem that she had been taking this. She’d also been seeking counselling but services are so stretched that she hadn’t been able to speak to anyone yet.  

To everyone looking in, Grace seemed fine. She was learning to drive, starting A levels, making plans for her life – and asking for the help she needed.  

Our situation just goes to show that young minds need looking after, they need understanding, and support. PAPYRUS is an incredible charity who focus on suicide prevention and helping young people who are struggling, and their families with how to support them. 

I’d do anything to help ensure that no other families have to go through what we’ve been through, which is I’m taking part in the Lifeline challenge with my dear friend Allan, an old family friend who’s known Grace since she was a baby. I can’t wait to get out there, push myself, and raise money for such a brilliant cause. 

There’s something so significant about walking through the night and still being on the mountain for sunrise – I think it symbolises the fact that there’s always another tomorrow. Even if it’s cloudy and you can’t always see it, it’s always there. 

You never move on from losing a child to suicide, but you continue to live. Our lives will never be the same again. After Grace’s death, Abbie and I moved over 300 miles away from Norfolk, to Northumberland, which is an incredible place to heal. 

And Grace still lives on. We are currently planning a celebration for her 21st birthday. She might not be here in body but we will always celebrate her life. She lives on in her artwork that is displayed on our walls, in the photos on the mantelpiece, in the shampoo that she used to use which I still smell to remind me of her, and in her sister – who grows more like her each day. And any time my legs are struggling during the climb up Scafell Pike, I’ll keep going – for Grace. 

I’ll never stop talking about Grace and telling her story – and I want to do everything I can to help other people never have to go through what we’ve been through. 

PAPYRUS is an amazing charity, who provide an incredible hotline. Sometimes, when you’re having scary thoughts, you just need to speak to someone removed from the situation – PAPYRUS can do that. 

To anyone out there who needs help or is struggling, please don’t hesitate to pick up the phone to them. 

I used to think suicide didn’t happen to families who were close

Claire Beach, 53, metalsmith, Cumbria 

I was in the hairdressers one Monday morning when I received a phone call from my oldest son Josef’s ex-girlfriend. 

She told me she was worried about Jo – as he liked to be called – as he’d gone to visit some friends on Friday and nobody had been able to get in touch with him since. I’d also tried calling him over the weekend and hadn’t been able to get hold of him, but I assumed he was just off having a good time somewhere. 

Two weeks later, the police would find my lovely son’s body in the woods and I would discover that he had taken his own life. 

Jo was a bit ‘different’, I always say that there’s nobody else like him. He was very individual and a kind and caring person – the sort of person who would step in if anyone was being bullied or mistreated. He was also very talented, both musically and artistically. He would walk into a room and light it up. 

But he had suffered with his mental health and depression for a lot of his life. He was a gentle, lovely person who had a lot of  horrible things going on in his head. 

Josef was taken from us six years ago, in 2016. He was in his final year of university, studying fine art illustration. I knew he’d been struggling but he was speaking to me about it, and his friends were supporting him, which was all reassuring.  

After I received the call from Jo’s ex-girlfriend that day, I tried not to panic and tell myself that, of course, everything would be ok. He sometimes went off grid a little, but he always turned up. I was sure he’d be with a friend somewhere, or back in Liverpool where he lived, or at Uni in Huddersfield. 

This time, he wasn’t. 

A two week search for Jo ensued shortly after we were unable to locate him. Frustratingly, his university wasn’t able to give me any information on how long it had been since he’d attended classes, due to data protection. But shortly after I reported him missing, the police were involved. 

The search area was big – I was in Cumbria, Jo was at university in Huddersfield and lived in Liverpool, had his dad in London, and friends all over. He could have been anywhere. 

We set up a social media campaign and the search went national. The overwhelming thing I remember about this period of time was just a constant feeling of hope. I just hoped and hoped he would turn up at someone’s house one day and apologise for worrying us all. While people around me started to think that something bad might have happened, I kept this hope alive. And I kept it alive for as long as I could. 

But the hope was dashed when the police called me to tell me Jo’s body had been found, in a woods in Liverpool. 

It’s hard to describe the feeling; just sheer and utter devastation. Before I had any time to process my feelings, I was told by the police that I needed to let any close friends and family know, before it ended up on the news or social media, given it had turned into a high profile search. 

I had to tell my mum and then my younger son over the phone. I think we were all in a state of disbelief. 

In the weeks and months following Jo’s death, my younger son tried to carry on as normal – it wasn’t until months and months later he really crashed. And it still affects him now. He’ll sometimes still ring me up and tell me that he’s having a hard time, and that he’s thinking about Jo. They had a good relationship and he’s felt every emotion from sadness to anger, feeling angry that his big brother left him.

It has affected his mental health too, and he’s struggled through uni and the pandemic but he’s done amazingly well and is just about to finish his second year at uni, studying performing arts.

In the months after, it was like living in limbo, waiting for the autopsy, and the coroner’s report and all of the police findings.

It  all felt unreal, like it wasn’t really happening, like watching a film that it isn’t really your life. I found myself bargaining a lot in those early days – I don’t know who with, as I’m not religious, but I’d find myself pleading that I’d give anything for just five more minutes, that I’d give my life in exchange for his. 

What breaks my heart is that, because of his illness, Jo didn’t believe that he was loved as much as he was. That’s the thing about suicide, the people who are left behind carry that pain. It never goes away.   

It does become more manageable, over time. It has been six years now and it’s taken me this long to be able to even think about taking on a challenge like this. 

I used to guilt myself for that. I’d see other bereaved parents who had lost children out there setting up charities and raising money, and I just wasn’t physically able. I want any other parents out there to know that these things take time – sometimes just looking after yourself and your family everyday is all you can do, and that’s enough. 

But I can’t wait for the Lifeline challenge and I feel there is a real significance for walking through the night, reaching the peak as it starts to become light. This makes me think of Jo; he was in darkness and he didn’t reach the light, so I will reach the light for him. 

Losing a child to suicide is so difficult, as you always think about what could have been, and whether it could have been prevented. 

And that’s why it’s so important to have these conversations. I used to think that suicide happened to people who weren’t supported, I didn’t think it happened to families who were close. It’s still a taboo subject but we need to speak openly about it so people can ask for help – from PAPYRUS and other places. 

Having suicidal thoughts shouldn’t be a death sentence. There is light at the end of the tunnel – please, ask for help. 

Josef was a one off, there will never be another one. Funny, angry, and happy, he rushed at everything he did – he didn’t have a stop button. He was over the top, he took joy in small things and he was unforgettable. The people whose lives he touched won’t forget him and nor should they. He will be missed, and he was lovely.’

Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing Kimberley.Bond@metro.co.uk 

Share your views in the comments below.

MORE : Metro.co.uk Lifeline campaign: Join us on a night climb of Scafell Pike to raise money for charity

MORE : ‘I lost my daughter to suicide – I’ll cry every day for the rest of my life’

MORE : ‘I set up a suicide prevention charity to stop other families from suffering like us’

On 14 April 2021, 17-year-old Darcy Grace Hollinson, from Tavistock in Devon, took her own life after grappling with worsening mental health.  

While the pain of losing the ‘vibrant and beautiful’ Darcy still haunts her mother, Debbie, every day, she is now campaigning to start vital conversations about young people, mental health and suicide.  

Heading off to Canada to take part a 10k run in honour of Darcy, mum Debbie will be using it as an opportunity to raise funds for suicide prevention charity PAPYRUS– Metro.co.uk Lifeline’s chosen charity for 2022.

Here, Debbie shares Darcy’s story and why she is so keen to raise awareness for the charity that helped her family through their darkest time. 

‘Darcy was a really vibrant girl: she was confident, intelligent, funny and feisty. She had a wide circle of friends, and not just from school, but from Cadets, Brownies and Guides, as well as friends from all different schools. She was quite a strong person, she wasn’t the sort of girl you would imagine to struggle with her mental health. 

But it happened fairly quickly. In less than two years, she went from being a really happy, bright, sociable and sparky girl and just hugely declined until she died. She was only 17. 

Things started when Darcy was about 15, when I noticed she was struggling with social anxiety. I thought it was around school, so I spoke to her teachers, and they were great in trying to accommodate to some of her needs. Then the pandemic happened. 

Lockdown had a really bad effect on Darcy. She was at that age where teenagers want to socialise, have boyfriends and have some independence, and lockdown took all that away from her. She started to worry about what she looked like, and she began to believe she was overweight. She developed bulimia, and generally went off her food. 

It was surprising as my daughter used to be quite body confident, completely at ease with herself. It was only when she got a little bit older, it would only take a couple of comments from people who aren’t really thinking what they’re saying.

Social media is there 24/7, pushing out images of what the perfect body is supposed to look like. When you’re young, you’re so influenced by what people think you should look like. I think that has a massive impact on Darcy. 

As her struggles continued, we tried to get her some help through the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS), but it was difficult. Because of the pandemic, we couldn’t see anyone face to face. We would have sessions over Zoom but Darcy had problems engaging with people she didn’t know on a video call, so it was really tough to get the right help. 

In April last year, things got really bad and Darcy began to really struggle. She was moody and withdrawn, and we couldn’t get any help for her. My husband, Michael, and I took time off work to stay with her and just try and talk through what she was feeling – but she almost couldn’t say herself what made her feel so sad.  

Then, on April 14 2021, Darcy took her own life. 

The days and weeks after losing our daughter are as painful as they are now as they were then. We have two older children, India and Louis, who lived away from home in Bristol and London. Having to break that news to them was the worst thing I’ve ever had to do.

They came home, and in the following weeks, we just couldn’t leave each other. We brought all our beds down into one room and all four of us slept together in one room. We just wanted to be together. I have always been protective over my family – and now I’m even more so.  

It was such a shock to lose Darcy, as so many people just didn’t know she was struggling. But it galvanised a number of fundraising efforts for charities such as PAPYRUS to raise awareness about suicide.

Many people thought if it could happen to someone like Darcy, it could happen to anyone. It opened conversations, but there’s still stigma to be fought around suicide. 

I’m still fighting to raise awareness and start conversations around mental health. Statistics from PAPYRUS show that suicide is the biggest killer of under 35’s in the UK, and over 200 school children die a year from suicide. This isn’t good enough.

I don’t know where my strength comes from, but I know I have to do everything I can to stop any other person taking their life, which causes another family to suffer in the same way we have.

If this effort saves one person, that’s great. I just have to keep going. I know it saves people as I’ve had messages from people who have heard Darcy’s story, and they’ve now thought twice about taking their own life. They’ve thanked me for having the ability to speak up about it. 

In honour of Darcy, and to raise money for PAPYRUS, I’m running a 10k with my best friend Ellie, who lives in Canada, on Sunday May. I’ve been friends with Ellie for over 30 years, we’ve supported each other through all our ups and downs since we were housemates in London in our twenties – although we never thought we’d have to support each other through the loss of a child.  

When she told me she was channelling her grief into a run called Love You in Canada to raise money for a women’s mental health charity, she asked me to fly over and join her.

I’m running to raise money for PAPYRUS, and some of the community in Tavistock are also running in Devon at the same time so it all feels like we’re running together. Ellie’s raised about $20,000 (£12,481), and I want to raise £10,000 myself. 

I spend every day trying to keep busy, focusing on my children and my husband, as well as raising awareness about mental health.  

Darcy would have been 18 in June last year. On that day, first thing in the morning, we planted a magnolia tree, and our church very kindly gave us a spot to plant it. We took some alpacas for a walk in the afternoon across Dartmoor.

We also had a fundraising cocktail gathering, with one of our local cocktail bars donating the proceeds of a specially made cocktail called the Darcy Star Martini – as she loved a pornstar martini! – to charity.   

This year, for the one-year anniversary of losing Darcy, Michael and I took India and Louis to the Lake District for a week to walk and we climbed The Old Man of Coniston, Scafell Pike and Helvellyn, taking time to reflect on the year and our memories of Darcy, including times spent in this area with her in the past. I know some Metro readers are doing a climb of Scafell Pike soon on behalf of PAPYRUS, and it is such a beautiful place to be.  

There’s still a massive cloud of grief. I have a picture of Darcy on my bedside table, so she’s the first thing I see in the morning and the last thing I see at night. It’s like a physical pain, and I don’t think it will ever go away. I will cry every day for the rest of my life.

You can’t understand it unless you’ve been here, and I don’t want anyone to have to go through this. No one should feel like this, and that’s why I’m so passionate about getting the awareness out there. 

I urge anyone who needs help to call the PAPYRUS Hopeline phone line, which provides a safe space for people to talk about their wellbeing and their circumstances. There are a lot of people who feel isolated and lonely. It’s such a massive thing to ask for help. People need to know they’re not alone. 

If you would like to donate to Debbie Hollinson’s JustGiving page, you can do so here.

Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing Kimberley.Bond@metro.co.uk 

Share your views in the comments below.

MORE : Metro.co.uk Lifeline campaign: Join us on a night climb of Scafell Pike to raise money for charity

MORE : ‘I set up a suicide prevention charity to stop other families from suffering like us’

MORE : My son took his own life in lockdown – as a parent, you can’t help but feel guilty

For our 2022 Lifeline campaign in support of the charity PAPYRUS Prevention of Young Person Suicide, we’ve organised a not-to-be-missed fundraising challenge that involves climbing England’s highest mountain, Scafell Pike, at night. 

Setting off just before midnight, our trekkers will scale an impressive 985 metres to reach the summit in the early hours, then begin to make their descent as the sun starts to rise over the breathtaking Lake District landscape. 

Once finished, our weary but proud adventurers will be treated to a celebratory breakfast to mark their amazing achievement.

It will be tough, it will be emotional and we have no doubt there will be tears.

However, it will also be a night to remember forever, as every step taken will be a step towards helping a young person’s life.

In fact, the whole idea of starting the climb at night and finishing at sunrise, is to reflect the vital work PAPYRUS does in helping families and young people find light at the darkest times of their life.

Taking place on the night of Saturday 2 July 2022, participants will just need to pay a registration fee of £39 and then raise a minimum of £325 for PAPYRUS, which the charity will use to continue saving more young lives and helping make our communities suicide-safe.

You definitely don’t need to be Bear Grylls to take part – just a basic level of fitness, a good pair of walking boots and a great sense of adventure. Oh, and don’t forget your head torch!

If you’re a solo traveller or new to challenges, be assured that you’ll also be well looked after every step of the way by the brilliant charity event organisers Charity Challenge, as well as Metro.co.uk and the team at PAPYRUS.

From our welcome email directing you to our dedicated JustGiving page to regular updates on training and things to know, especially as the date draws closer, you’ll be fully supported.

Then on top of that, there’s our dedicated Lifeline 2022 Facebook page which will be open to all our participants so you can get to know each other, while share trekking tips, accommodation ideas, travel plans and ask any questions you might have about the challenge.

Places are limited, so if you want to join us on our unforgettable adventure, sign up to the Scafell Pike at Night Lifeline Challenge here. 

MORE : ‘We need to talk about child suicide – it’s heartbreaking I didn’t know my daughter was so unhappy’

MORE : ‘I set up a suicide prevention charity to stop other families from suffering like us’

MORE : My son took his own life in lockdown – as a parent, you can’t help but feel guilty

‘He was saying he didn’t have any friends and that he was ugly,’ remembers his mum, Sophie*, who adds that of course neither was true. Her son then told her: “I want to die mummy.”’

Hearing these words from anyone is hard enough, but from someone so young is harrowing, especially in the knowledge that suicide is the main cause of death in people under the age of 35 in the UK.

Harry had experienced a period of ill health and gone through a number of traumatic procedures and an operation, followed by lockdown and all the disruption to his schooling that that entailed. He lost all his confidence and was overcome with fear.

 His mum recalls how her little boy didn’t even want to go outside because he was scared of his own garden. Then last spring the anxiety attacks started.

‘He starts feeling sick, and he gets a tummy ache,’ explains Sophie. ‘Then his breath becomes shorter. And he starts thinking that he can’t do anything. He will say things like “my brain is telling me that I’m not good enough”. You can see him, his head is shaking – it’s like he’s trying to knock the thoughts out of his head.’

It was a horrific time for the whole family and Sophie worked with his school every day to find a solution.

‘His teachers were phenomenal and we were all trying to learn together to understand how we could help him,’ she tells Metro.co.uk. ‘The learning support assistant would take him outside when he started having a panic attack and they’d look at the trees and do some sort of mindfulness stuff and together we developed strategies.’

Harry had private therapy, and though he still experiences excessive worry and anxiety, he is on the road to recovery. But Sophie has been frustrated – and at times furious – about the lack of support she has been given from the school’s senior management.

She feels insufficient steps were taken to support Harry as he moved up a year, and when she tried to intervene, she was told she was ‘pandering’ to her son. His panic attacks increased during the transition.

‘Schools need to know anxiety has to be recognised as a condition. It’s an illness that needs to be taken seriously,’ says Sophie.

‘They need to listen to the parents and understand what is going on with children. Mental health is sometimes seen as a tick box exercise.’

More than 200 school children take their own lives every year in the UK, according to the charity PAPYRUS Prevention of Young Suicide, and suicides among teens have been on the increase for more than a decade. 

Research done by the charity earlier this year revealed that children want their schools to teach them about mental health and wellbeing to help them survive life.

‘Having returned to school after almost two years of unimaginable uncertainly and disruption to their lives, children are telling us they need to know how to better protect themselves when they are struggling,’ explains Ged Flynn, Chief Executive of PAPYRUS.

“The pandemic impacted on their mental health and they are now reaching out for information which would mean they were better informed, able to identify when they are at risk, how to stay safe and where to get help.

‘In our research, schools and education were mentioned spontaneously as the biggest cause of stress and anxiety across all age groups and yet schools can also help to lead a generation of bewildered children out of the darkness and into safety.’     

Benjamin* is 11. He started his secondary education in September, and has been let down appallingly by his school which has consistently failed to provide the empathy and understanding he so desperately needs, his grandmother Samantha* says.

Benjamin has a history of trauma, bereavement, social, mental, education and health (SMEH) needs and has been experiencing depression and suicidal ideation. He has recently made two worrying attempts to hurt himself while at school.

Despite the involvement of social workers, Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) and his doctor, Benjamin has been continually punished for his behavioural issues with detentions and sanctions.

Samantha, who is also his guardian, says: ‘Since September, he’s had over 80 detentions and two exclusions.

‘The school seem to have it in for him. It is hellbent on the behaviour policy. You look the wrong way, you get a detention, you talk out of line, you get a detention, you pick a pen up off the floor, you get a detention. These are ridiculous things that no child should be sanctioned at that level for. The school have made his life a misery.

‘The whole system is a problem and it’s disproportionately affecting Black children. Other parents are experiencing the same thing. It is a big racial issue.’

Samantha believes that by rigidly sticking to behavioural standards, the school is failing her grandson.

 ‘He’s down. He’s low. He feels voiceless and powerless,’ she says. ‘He said to me recently, he doesn’t feel normal. He feels like he’s being victimised and bullied.’

Unsure what to do, Samantha went to the GP who signed Benjamin off school immediately, concerned that he is unsafe.

‘The children that have any form of disability or SMHE needs, they are the ones that are suffering the most, because they can’t help their behaviour,’ she says. ‘They are the ones on the scrapheap. My grandson has extensive trauma, we’ve had Covid on top of that. How are we expecting an 11-year to navigate through that?

‘What is it going to take to make a change? Will it take a suicide? That’s what so sad. It’s not until something goes drastically wrong that things will improve.’

Steve Phillip lost his son Jordan to suicide in December 2019. He feels that Jordan, who was 34, would have benefitted from more mental health support at school.

‘Most suicides are preventable,’ he adds. ‘If you have early detection of the signs, interventions in place and the right prevention measures, then the evidence out there is that suicide is preventable right up to the last minute.

‘We educate young people to be academically successful, but what we don’t do, is prepare them for for life. If you can get in early and start to have conversations with children from very young ages, around emotions, experiences, and resilience, then you can equip children much more effectively.’

Jordan suffered from depression for much of his life. He was popular, kind and helpful, but he didn’t like to talk about his feelings. After his death, Steve found journals that indicated Jordan had been researching suicide for years. His diary entries presented a young man in pain and torment. Crucially, Steve said, Jordan didn’t want to die; he just wanted the agony to stop.

‘There may be many reasons why he took the typical male route and chose not to talk about his mental health in any depth,’ he says. ‘But had he been able to find ways to express how he was feeling, then we might have had a very different different outcome.’

Steve, 62, has since set up the Jordan Legacy to make sure the lessons from Jordan’s death can inform other families and prevent suicides. It is a job for parents to make sure that they are really connecting with their kids at home, Steve says. And in education, he advocates a whole-school approach that puts mental health at the front of every interaction.

‘It can have a pretty major impact on children if they feel they are not being cared, loved or listened to,’ he explains. ‘It sometimes tragically just takes almost a rash moment where that child could be walking past a bridge and goes, “I’ve just had enough for this”. And at a young age, that can just just happen all too easily.’

Jonny Benjamin, a mental health campaigner who speaks publicly about living with mental illness, made such a journey to a bridge in 2008. Fortunately, he was rescued by a passer-by. He believes that the pandemic has led many young people into a ‘desperate situation.’

‘There is an increase in eating disorders, in self harm and suicidal ideation and attempts. It’s terrifying,’ says Johnny. ‘If we started early strategies on the prevention side, we can make such a difference, instead of waiting until crisis point. With young people, they are taught about their teeth and gums from an early age. It’s not the same for their mental health. Why not? If we did, we could make such a difference.’

 Steve agrees: ‘We put so much store on physical appearance these days through Instagram and TikTok and so on, but where is the same debate about the importance about looking after your mental health? It’s just not there. Fundamentally, I would argue that mental health is much more important than your teeth.’

Educational and child psychologist Hannah Abrahams says that it is imperative that if a child is talking or writing about suicidal ideation, or shows any sign of self harm, that caregivers seek professional support immediately and in a sensitive manner.

‘Tragically, those children who die by suicide are often those that do not reach out for support, or feel that this is the only answer for them,’ she explains. ‘It thus remains our job to reach out to all who may be suffering and work with children from a young age to navigate mental health needs.

‘Encouraging children to “name feelings to tame them,” is key. Just as we support babies and toddlers in learning to speak, we need to support children and young people in learning to use the emotional literacy skills too.’

20-year-old Ayla Jones, from Port Talbot in South Wales, tells Metro.co.uk that she spent most of her childhood and teen years existing, rather than living. She felt alone, lacking purpose and as if there were ‘no point’.

An ambitious and intelligent girl, she suffered from anxiety, depression and had her first psychotic episode at the age of 15.

For two years Ayla would experience hypomanic and manic episodes, where she would stay up all night, listening to music whilst doing her hair and makeup because she was too excited to sleep. She ended up with no sense of day or time, and going from the top of her class in primary school – she was predicted to be an A* student – to leaving secondary school without a single GCSE.

‘The teachers in my comprehensive school were wonderful people – but I still feel let down,’ Ayla admits. ‘There aren’t the resources, facilities and funding to suit the needs for individuals like myself, who may find it difficult to cope.

 ‘I felt as though I had been left behind. I felt like a failure. I felt not good enough and not worthy. When in actual fact, I think it was the school that failed me.’

 Ayla says mental health education should be given the same priority on the national curriculum as maths and English, and that all teachers and staff should be given mandatory mental health first aid training.

It was through support from Jonny Benjamin and his charity Beyond – which raises money to help other organisations and schools that are underfunded, while sharing knowledge and best practice – that got Ayla back on track.

She did exceptionally well getting the qualifications to attend Swansea University, where she is now training to be a mental health nurse. She has listed a number of ideas that she thinks could help children in primary and secondary school, including a daily mindfulness morning, ‘time out’ cards for students under stress, and lessons on meditation and relaxation techniques, along with life skills and coping techniques.

While there is more work to be done, schools are getting better at supporting young people, according to Ed Lowther, Head of Education at mental health and wellness clinic the Soke.

 ‘We’re certainly seeing more schools take responsibility for the wellbeing of their student population,’ he explains. ‘There’s a great deal more access to in-school mental health resources than existed two years ago. Whilst a lot of it has been in response to the pandemic, the by-product appears to be that more understanding and empathic attitudes are here to stay.’

And there are stories from around the country where individual teachers succeed in supporting students, against the everyday pressures of schooling, Ofsted inspections and Covid-related absence.

Janey* says that when her seven-year-old son started refusing to go to school, the entire staff stepped up to help.

‘We told the teachers that he had anxiety and they were all so supportive,’ she remembers. ‘They listened to our concerns as parents and they made sure my son was nurtured and cared for. His wellbeing was discussed at staff meetings, and everyone understood what they needed to do to help him.

‘Day-by-day we came up with strategies that made him feel more comfortable at school, and he was given extra support from a specialist. He was allowed to sit out of the situations that made him anxious until he felt stronger.

‘Now he’s happy, calm and confident again. He’s thriving and this is all down to the whole-school approach of kindness and acceptance. I feel very grateful to them.’

*Names have been changed to protect children’s identities 

MORE : Metro.co.uk Lifeline campaign: Join us on a night climb of Scafell Pike to raise money for charity

MORE : ‘We need to talk about child suicide – it’s heartbreaking I didn’t know my daughter was so unhappy’

MORE : My son took his own life in lockdown – as a parent, you can’t help but feel guilty

For our 2022 Lifeline campaign in support of the charity PAPYRUS Prevention of Young Person Suicide, we’ve organised a not-to-be-missed fundraising challenge that involves climbing England’s highest mountain, Scafell Pike, at night. 

Setting off just before midnight, our trekkers will scale an impressive 985 metres to reach the summit in the early hours, then begin to make their descent as the sun starts to rise over the breathtaking Lake District landscape. 

Once finished, our weary but proud adventurers will be treated to a celebratory breakfast to mark their amazing achievement.

It will be tough, it will be emotional and we have no doubt there will be tears.

However, it will also be a night to remember forever, as every step taken will be a step towards helping a young person’s life.

In fact, the whole idea of starting the climb at night and finishing at sunrise, is to reflect the vital work PAPYRUS does in helping families and young people find light at the darkest times of their life.

Taking place on the night of Saturday 2 July 2022, participants will just need to pay a registration fee of £39 and then raise a minimum of £325 for PAPYRUS, which the charity will use to continue saving more young lives and helping make our communities suicide-safe.

You definitely don’t need to be Bear Grylls to take part – just a basic level of fitness, a good pair of walking boots and a great sense of adventure. Oh, and don’t forget your head torch!

If you’re a solo traveller or new to challenges, be assured that you’ll also be well looked after every step of the way by the brilliant charity event organisers Charity Challenge, as well as Metro.co.uk and the team at PAPYRUS.

From our welcome email directing you to our dedicated JustGiving page to regular updates on training and things to know, especially as the date draws closer, you’ll be fully supported.

Then on top of that, there’s our dedicated Lifeline 2022 Facebook page which will be open to all our participants so you can get to know each other, while share trekking tips, accommodation ideas, travel plans and ask any questions you might have about the challenge.

Places are limited, so if you want to join us on our unforgettable adventure, sign up to the Scafell Pike at Night Lifeline Challenge here. 

MORE : ‘We need to talk about child suicide – it’s heartbreaking I didn’t know my daughter was so unhappy’

MORE : ‘I set up a suicide prevention charity to stop other families from suffering like us’

MORE : My son took his own life in lockdown – as a parent, you can’t help but feel guilty

WARNING: Distressing images

A heartbroken mother has shared devastating pictures of her son’s final moments to raise awareness about the impact of bullying.

Drayke Hardman, a 12-year-old from the US, took his own life after being tormented at school.

Parents Samie and Andrew Hardman, from Tooele County in Utah, said the young basketball fan would often play it down or lie about how he had sustained his injuries.

On February 9, the boy’s parents said he had asked to miss training to stay home instead.

The 12-year-old boy attempted to take his life later that night and was found in his bedroom by his sisters.

According to local reports, he was taken to hospital but died the following morning.

In a Facebook post on February 11, Drayke’s mother Samie wrote: ‘This is the result of bullying, my handsome boy was fighting a battle that not even I could save him.

‘It is real, it is silent and there is nothing absolutely nothing as a parent you can do to take this deep hurt away.

‘There are no signs, only hurtful words of others that ultimately stole our Drayke from this cruel place.

‘This boy knew love, every single day of his life, he was our world, my world, his dads world, his sisters world revolved around this boy.

‘To know Drayke was to love him, he had a fire that lit for people, his witty personality and those baby blue eyes won over the world.

‘You are my saving grace, you are daddy’s hunting guide, and you are now the forever protectors of your big sisters. I’m not sure how to navigate this life without you.

‘I was supposed to spend the rest of my life with you, and instead you spent the rest of yours with me.

‘My heart is shattered, I don’t know how to fix it, or if I ever will, but I will spend every minute teaching kindness in the memory of my favorite dude.’

The family have started a fundraising campaign to raise money for Drayke’s funeral and $100,000 has since been donated.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

In 2016, 14-year-old aspiring student Jessica Collins took her own life. With over 200 children lost to suicide in the UK every year, her mum Lee-Anne talks about what it’s like to lose a child this way and why every parent and young person needs to be more aware of the dangers of social media.

‘I never understood what real grief was, until I lost my daughter, Jessica, to suicide. I couldn’t get out of bed, or function as a person, let alone a mother. 

The day she died, my whole world died and I know I will never be the same. 

I was young when I had Jessica and her twin brother, Adam – just before my 18^th birthday. So you could say I grew up with them. 

She and I were like best friends. We were the Queen of Shops, going to Primark and all the usual girlie places. We would do our nails, our hair – we loved spending time together. And it wasn’t just a girls’ club; she was close with her dad, too.

However, Jessica wasn’t a typical 14-year-old. She had a very old head on her shoulders, and absolutely doted on her little sister, Molly, who was four years younger. 

Molly would organise tea parties, and Jessica would skip hanging out with her friends just to attend. She made sure that her little sister knew she was her world.

Jessica was very different from her twin brother, but they’d always got on well, too. 

When we moved to Great Yarmouth seven years ago from East London,  it was a massive change – and our kids loved it. The fresh air, being out of the city. They made friends really easily. Jessica thought she’d found the best friends, the ones she would grow up with for the rest of her life.

She was an incredible student, and academically talented. She even secured a youth scholarship to the University of Cambridge. She wanted to become a music teacher, and she had a very bright future.

Just a few months after we moved, I lost my mum to lung cancer. It was heartbreaking – like Jessica and me, my mum and I were like two peas in a pod. I only had my mum, no dad, and in my mind that was always going to be the biggest loss I’d ever suffer. 

Jessica took it really hard too, as they were extremely close. But there were other things going on, things I didn’t know about.

She was having issues with her friendships. There were rumours – which turned out to be completely false – going around that something had been sent on Snapchat, something she was supposed to have said or done. On social media, things can just go around so much faster. There’s no way to share or say anything privately anymore – and it just blew up.  

One Tuesday night in July, I was in a rush trying to find a pair of leggings. Jessica helped me, and I remember saying: ‘Thank you, I love you. I’ll speak to you later.’ Those were the last words I spoke to her. 

When I came home, my husband, David, said Jessica had gone to bed – she was prone to migraines, and would usually go to a dark room to sleep it off. But the next day, 6 July 2016, she didn’t wake up.

Jessica would normally get her little sister up for school, because they shared a bedroom. But that morning, my husband noticed that the room was quiet. ‘I can’t hear the girls,’ he said. 

When he went in, Molly was still asleep on the top bunk. Jessica was on the bottom. My husband found her. He came running out and shouted, ‘Oh my god, Jessica’s dead.’

He desperately tried to bring her back with CPR as we waited for the ambulance, but it was too late. 

I remember going outside and screaming. I’m disabled, and at that time I was in a wheelchair or using a stick. My neighbour was holding me up to keep me on my feet. Another neighbour used to be a nurse, so she ran upstairs to help my husband. 

To this day, I still don’t remember a lot of what happened next. Maybe that’s a good thing. Sometimes it’s nice not to know, but sometimes I wish I could remember just to piece together the puzzle. 

I don’t really try to remember, because I know it won’t make a difference. I don’t even know when I found out she was really dead.

When Jessica died, we had to leave our family home. Molly couldn’t even go back into that bedroom. We moved so we would have no ties to the house.

Looking back, I think everything just got too much for her, and what breaks my heart is that I wasn’t really aware. I was grieving so hard for my mum. 

About three years ago, I decided I had to turn my grief, my pain, into something positive. 

I was part of some social media groups for bereaved parents, and every day – every hour – there was a parent logging on saying they’d lost their child to suicide. I’ve read stories from America, where children were taking their own lives at seven years old – seven is just a baby.

The name PAPYRUS, a national charity dedicated to the prevention of young suicide, came up a few times, and I got in touch and asked them what I could do, to please let me help. 

I wanted to do something to help highlight the support out there and make people aware of child suicide, as I do wonder if Jessica had known about PAPYRUS, whether she would have reached out to them before it got to where it did.

I do know that if it hadn’t been for PAPYRUS, I may not be here today. They have been the most incredible support. And quite a lot of people have said to me that this small charity has saved them or helped save their child, or helped them understand their child better.

PAPYRUS is campaigning for greater online safety and awareness around social media, and I think that schools and parents need to be more educated on that, especially about platforms they don’t use like Snapchat or TikTok. There’s also the Online Safety Bill making its way through Parliament now, which has a subsection dedicated to protecting children. 

Change needs to happen, and I just want to be part of that change.

Jessica didn’t think she had friends who cared about her, but she did. Some still honour her memory – they have tattoos of her name, help raise money and visit her memorial bench. Jessica’s school, Cliff Park Ormiston Academy, even created the Jessica Collins Music Award.

We have good days and bad days now. Our whole family suffers from mental health issues. My daughter, Molly, who’s just past the age Jessica was when she died, suffers from severe PTSD. But we stay as strong as we can, we stay together as a family. Adam, her twin, is amazing – lives every day to the fullest.  

And anything I can do, to help stop more tragedies, I do in my daughter’s name. I do it with a smile on my face, because I know that’s what she’d want.’

MORE : ‘I set up a suicide prevention charity to stop other families from suffering like us’

MORE : My son took his own life in lockdown – as a parent, you can’t help but feel guilty

MORE : Want an unforgettable adventure? Sign up to our night-time mountain climb

Children want to learn more about how to manage their mental health at school, a leading charity has said.

The national charity PAPYRUS Prevention of Young Suicide interviewed young people aged from 11 to 19, and each age group said they believed this could be helpful.

Pupils would like to see greater emphasis on learning life-skills while at school, to equip them to cope with stress and anxiety.

Some said that the predominant focus on achieving academic success left them feeling inadequate and ill-prepared for life beyond the classroom.

Speaking at the start of Children’s Mental Health Week today, the Chief Executive of PAPYRUS, Ged Flynn, said: ‘Being a child or a teenager right now is tough. We know that because they’ve told us so.’

‘Having recently returned to school after almost two years of unimaginable uncertainly and disruption to their lives, children are telling us they need to know how to better protect themselves when they are struggling.

‘The pandemic impacted on their mental health and they are now reaching out for information which would mean they were better informed, able to identify when they are at risk, how to stay safe and where to get help.’

The charity – which Metro.co.uk is supporting as part of our 2022 Lifeline campaign – is concerned that suicides among teenagers have been increasing for more than a decade, and wants to understand some of the possible reasons why.

Mr Flynn added: ‘In our research, schools and education were mentioned spontaneously as the biggest cause of stress and anxiety across all age groups and yet schools can also help to lead a generation of bewildered children out of the darkness and into safety.’

He added that those interviewed in all age groups taking part in the research said they had either known someone who had had suicidal thoughts or felt that way in some form themselves.

During the pandemic, PAPYRUS saw a 25% increase in the number of calls, texts and emails to its confidential hopeline telephone service.

In 2020 and 2021 at least one in every three contacts was from a child under the age of 18.

With suicide the biggest killer of people under 35 in the UK, PAPYRUS aims to reduce the number of young people who take their own lives by breaking downstigma and equipping people with the skills to recognise and respond to suicidal behaviour.

For practical, confidential suicide prevention help and advice you can contact PAPYRUS HOPELINEUK on 0800 068 4141, text 07860 039967 or email pat@papyrus-uk.org.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

The last time I saw my son, Ben, was March 2020, just before we went into lockdown. 

He was in his final year at Loughborough University, where he was on the Defence Technical Undergraduate Scheme, and had come to spend the weekend with us – ahead of the impending restrictions. 

On the Sunday morning, he and I went for a run together. We didn’t often do that but it was a chance for us to spend some time together, and catch up (as much as I was able, while trying to keep pace with him). 

We went round one of my favourite routes, and I remember everything about that run, because it was a poignant one. Two hours later, I took him to get the train back to university, where I said goodbye to him. 

I never saw him again. Just six weeks later, he would take his own life. 

We went into lockdown a few days after he had come to visit for the weekend. Ben had a neurodiverse condition (ASD and dyspraxia), and he found the whole thing very difficult. He was living in an attic room, where his only daylight was a skylight, so he had to lie in bed to be able to see the sky.  He could go out for a run, or a cycle, as he loved to do, but he had to do it alone, and once a day. It was a huge adjustment for him, and one he was struggling with. 

However, what we didn’t realise was just how much he was struggling, or how bad his mental health was. He never spoke about his issues, or the kind of feelings he was having. That was the problem – and that’s part of the reason why I’m doing the work I do now, to raise awareness and help young people and families who are affected by the high suicide rates in this country. 

Suicide is the biggest killer of under 35s in the UK. I want to help try to change that, so that other families don’t have to go through what we’re going through. And so that other young people, like Ben, know where to turn if they’re having suicidal ideation. 

It was a pleasure to be Ben’s father. He was an engaging, thoughtful, caring person. He was popular, loved and would always put others first. He loved to cycle, play rugby, swim and travel. In his 22 years he’d been to places including Morocco, Thailand, Madagascar and Vietnam.

I like to think that I’ve been very fortunate to have someone like him in my life. I just wish it could have lasted longer. 

On 27 of April, 2020, I got a call from my ex-wife that I will never forget. It’s one of those calls that you dread ever happening. The kind of call that feels like it happens to other people, not you. The kind of call you need to be sitting down for. 

She told me: ‘Ben’s killed himself.’ I just remember collapsing onto the floor, and we were shouting ‘no, no, no’ down the phone to one another. 

That moment, when you get news that your child has been a victim to suicide, is the point in which your old life ends and your new life begins. It has to – because you have to go on, but things will never be the same again. 

At that point, we were in lockdown and I had been furloughed, so I wasn’t working. It was still fairly near the beginning of the pandemic and life already felt very strange. And in the aftermath of finding out that Ben had taken his life, it felt completely surreal. Experts talk about phases of grief, with denial being one of them. I was in the denial stage for a few days. 

Due to Covid restrictions, I wasn’t allowed to go anywhere. So, every morning I’d get up at sunrise and I’d sit on our front porch, just watching and waiting for him to turn up. Hoping that he might make his way up the path from the bus stop, like he used to. He never appeared. 

The next few days were a blur but I remember the moment it really sank in was when I read news reports that a body had been found, in the area we knew he‘d been located in his last hours. Shortly after – four days after that initial phone call – the police confirmed that it was him. 

Ben had three siblings, two younger and one older, who were devastated. But one of the worst things was telling Ben’s grandmother. They were so close and I knew it would destroy her – but, as well as that, it also felt like I was admitting failure on my part. 

As a parent, you can’t help but blame yourself – it’s almost inevitable that you will. I know that I will spend the rest of my life feeling guilty. You never get all the answers. Even if they left the most perfect note, you still want to drag them back and ask them ‘why?’

As I mentioned, Ben was neurodiverse, which does present some challenges to coping with everyday life – although he coped well. I’m neurodiverse as well, so I thought I understood how he was feeling. And on the surface, he seemed to be doing fine. 

He was at university, he was an active member of the Typhoon Squadron, he had a full social life and people who cared about him. After he died, we found out that he had actually been helping others who were struggling with their mental health – one friend even said that Ben saved his life. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to ask for help dealing with his own feelings. 

Ben let us know that he found certain things challenging – but we never had any indication of any suicidal ideations.

That day in April, Ben made the decision to take his own life.

He wrote letters before he did it, dropped a pin, and made notes on his phone that he knew we would find. The inquest confirmed that he hadn’t drunk alcohol, or taken any drugs. He made a clear, rational decision. I accept that. However, it’s a decision that we’ll never truly understand. 

On the one week anniversary of his death, I had this huge compulsion to sit in the spot we know he sat in, for 40 minutes, before he took his life. After permission from my police liaison officer, I went and I sat there at 1am. Imagining him there was one of the most harrowing experiences of my life. 

It’s still very raw to this day. There are so many questions, so many unanswered things. But you have to keep going. 

PAYRUS, a national charity dedicated to the prevention of young suicide, have been incredible in helping me and my family cope with this. As a charity, the work they do is amazing. They take calls from young people who need help and protection. They roll out mental health and suicide prevention training to organisations and individuals. They aim for a society that speaks openly about suicide and has the resources to help young people who may have suicidal thoughts. 

I feel passionate about this too – that’s why I’m telling my story. I want others to talk about how they’re feeling, before it’s too late. I want other families to know they’re not alone.

One thing I know is that we need to do something: we can’t allow thousands of suicides to keep happening every single year. We can’t allow this to keep killing our children. I want parents to realise that the biggest danger that faces their children isn’t necessarily traffic, or strangers, or other people harming them. It’s suicide. 

Ultimately, I want Ben’s death to help save lives. 

This has been a catalyst for me. My life looks nothing like it did before.

I never went back to my job that I was furloughed from. I co-founded WASP (Workplace Awareness for Suicide Prevention); I now do a lot of public speaking about this subject.

I also run a podcast called My Argument with Grief, which explores mental health issues surrounding suicide, aims to help people who might be having suicidal thoughts, and shares my experiences with those going through similar losses. I’ve trained as humanist celebrant too, specialising in funerals for suicide victims. 

And I’ve co-founded For Ben; Foundation, of which PAPYRUS is a partner. The two fundraising challenges that we’ve run in Ben’s memory so far have helped to raise more than £50,000. We had an incredible response, which is down to Ben and the impact he had on people. 

As well as the fundraising element, our aim is to get people talking and give advice on how to ask how other people are coping with their mental health.

This is crucial because, culturally, suicide is still taboo and it’s often still brushed under the carpet. I understand why people find it difficult, but that’s not going to stop me trying to change things. 

We need people talking about it. We need to do something about it. We need to look at how we can change things. We need to open up. 

I wish this hadn’t happened, of course I do. But this is my life now, this is where I’ve found myself – and I want to make a difference. 

As toldto Siobhan Smith.

MORE : Want an unforgettable adventure? Sign up to our night-time mountain climb

MORE : ‘I set up a suicide prevention charity to stop other families from suffering like us’

‘When Edward died, it came as a complete and utter shock to me and our whole family. It was November 1989 and he showed no signs of depression or anxiety – he was 17 and seemed to be happy.

For a lot of people, suicide seems out of the blue for the family and friends affected by it. Unfortunately, most people who die from it are not known to mental health services.

Edward was a joy to us. He was kind, caring, wise beyond his years and academically gifted with a brilliant future ahead of him. He was thoughtful, too – whenever it was someone’s birthday, he’d make a cake for them. It’s these memories of him that I’ve cherished in the 30 odd years since his passing.

After his death, my husband and I didn’t really know what to do with ourselves. When we battled through the initial shock, we felt that we needed some support so we ended up contacting a group for bereaved parents called Compassionate Friends. 

We were comforted by the fact that we met other parents who had lost children in many different ways – some from suicide. But it was then that I realised I couldn’t see any charities specifically addressing suicide in young people.

I just had so many questions that needed answering about how to prevent this from happening to any other parents like us. How could we make use of this to prevent other families going through the same thing? What could we learn from it?

So, I started writing to health organisations because there was nothing – as far as I knew – that used the experiences of friends and family to help raise awareness of the issue.

I attended suicide prevention conferences, made contact with my NHS Trust and through them, I was asked into meetings with the Department of Health. Eventually, I was invited to speak at conferences and became a leading voice on youth suicide.

It became the thing that I wanted to do because I realised that my own experience and the experience of others can be the key to opening up conversations. I wanted to pass this knowledge on in the hope that it could prevent it from happening to other families.

Suddenly, I realised people started to listen to me and I was beginning to make some real change. But I really felt like a lone voice and I couldn’t keep doing it all by myself.

While giving talks, I would meet other parents affected by suicide and we were eventually galvanised to come up with the idea of PAPYRUS, the Parents’ Association for the Prevention of Young Suicide, because we believed parents have a unique perspective.

In March 1997 – eight years after my son’s death – it became a reality.

In those early days, we were meeting at our home and only had about £10 each between the seven of us. We set out trying to find other parents to join us and help share their stories.

Just by saying the word ‘suicide’ and refusing to hide it is so powerful. When people affected by it speak out, it can be such a powerful tool to cut through to others.

I was the chair of the charity for the first four years since its inception and – after eight years of activism before that – I decided to take a step back and place the charity in the safe hands of a fellow mother whose child had taken their own life, Anne Parry. Anne would go on to set up HOPELINEUK.

The charity felt like my child, in the sense that I nurtured it in those early years and then it found its own feet and has gone forward without me. I had helped start those conversations but it was time for others to come in and help the charity grow.

As time has gone on, professionals within the field came on board. Today, almost 25 years on, PAPYRUS is still going strong and has become a lifeline to so many across the UK.

That includes a dedicated helpline that provides confidential support and advice to young people struggling with thoughts of suicide, as well as training programmes to individuals, groups, local councils, healthcare professionals and school staff.

We’ve also been a long-standing member of the government advisory groups in England and Wales on suicide prevention matters

We will never know exactly how many people we have saved – but it’s never been about quantifying numbers. The things we hold on to are the stories and feedback we’ve had over the years.

From people who were spurred into volunteering with the charity after calling our helpline during their most vulnerable moments, to a young student watching a video of ours during a school presentation and then going up to one of our workers and asking for help because she saw the warning signs in herself. 

Intervention is so important. A few years ago, a woman called our charity after her child had been taken from her and she was in a deep depression.

On the phone, she said she had nothing to live for, so after spotting some red flags, we alerted emergency services. Thankfully, by the time they got there, she was in a position to answer the door.

A few months later, the woman called us again and said that that phone call saved her life. She was still finding life really tough, but she was alive – and she was thankful.

If only my son Edward had the same opportunity to be saved.

Our core belief is this – many young suicides are preventable. It is inevitable that young people will find life really challenging sometimes. We certainly can’t prevent that, but we can counter that with hope and conversation.

I’m so thankful that Metro.co.uk has decided to partner with PAPYRUS for their Lifeline challenge this year, which will see an adventurous group of people climb Scafell Pike at night, so they can help raise cash and awareness for us. 

The money raised will go to more phone calls, more emails, more training sessions and more campaign work to save lives. Every pound and step taken on this challenge is important and every effort is appreciated.

The health benefits – both physical and mental – of doing the event itself will no doubt be a huge motivating factor for many. But if it raises awareness to people that there’s help and resources available, that’s invaluable.

The need for our work will sadly never end, but if we can save just one life, then we’ll know we’ve made a positive change.

Edward would’ve been 50 years old this year. You never recover from the loss and he will always be missed.

At first, it was my whole life that was devastated. As time has gone on, I’ve learnt to walk beside this tragedy – knowing that at least some good has come from it is great comfort.

Suicide can affect anyone and we often don’t know where or when. If you’re struggling, contact our helpline or if you’re worried about someone else, talk to the person you’re concerned about. Ask them to write it down, if they can’t speak.

Taking your own life is not the only option – help and hope is always available. Don’t suffer in silence.’

MORE : Want an unforgettable adventure? Sign up to our night-time mountain climb

MORE : My son took his own life in lockdown – as a parent, you can’t help but feel guilty

MORE : ‘I just want to burst into tears’: Children tell us what anxiety means to them

With suicide being the biggest killer of under 35s in the UK – and more than 200 of those being schoolchildren every year – we’ve joined forces with the charity PAPYRUS Prevention of Young Suicide, to bring you the most amazing challenge that will help those who are struggling with life.

Living in a pandemic over the last two years has been extremely tough for many – whether it’s because lockdown has left us feeling restricted and restless, or made a severe dent on our mental wellbeing.

According to PAPYRUS’ Chief Executive, Ged Flynn, around nine in every 10 calls, texts and emails to the charity’s HOPELINEUK service referenced coronavirus soon after lockdown began, with children and young adults having thoughts of suicide and others concerned about a young person who was struggling. 

He also warns of a longer-term problem of emotional distress for young people, following this surge in calls for help.

That’s why we wanted this year’s Lifeline challenge to not only offer the opportunity of an unforgettable adventure, but also reflect the vital work PAPYRUS does in helping families and young people find light at the darkest times of their life.

So what have we got in store? Climbing England’s highest mountain, Scafell Pike, at night. 

Setting off just before midnight, our trekkers will scale an impressive 985 metres to reach the summit in the early hours, then begin to make their descent as the sun starts to rise over the breathtaking Lake District landscape. 

Once finished, our weary but proud adventurers will be treated to a celebratory breakfast to mark their amazing achievement.

It will be tough, it will be emotional and we have no doubt there will be tears.

But it will also be a night to remember forever, as every step taken will be a step towards helping a young person’s life.

Taking place on the night of Saturday 2 July 2022, participants will just need to pay a registration fee of £39 and then raise a minimum of £325 for PAPYRUS, which the charity will use to continue saving more young lives and helping make our communities suicide-safe.

And you definitely don’t need to be Bear Grylls to take part – just a basic level of fitness, a good pair of walking boots and a great sense of adventure. Oh, and don’t forget your headtorch!

You’ll also be supported every step of the way by the brilliant charity event organisers Charity Challenge, as well as Metro.co.uk and the team at PAPYRUS.

Places are limited, so if you want to join us on our unforgettable adventure, sign up to the Scafell Pike at Night Lifeline Challenge here. 

MORE : ‘I set up a suicide prevention charity to stop other families from suffering like us’

MORE : My son took his own life in lockdown – as a parent, you can’t help but feel guilty

MORE : ‘I just want to burst into tears’: Children tell us what anxiety means to them