How the Somerset Suicide Bereavement Service works

A study published earlier this year found an average of 135 people are affected following someone taking their own life.

In the wake of someone else’s decision, the loved ones suffering through bereavement are left needing support.

Fortunately in Somerset, a dedicated team works tirelessly to help those struggling with a loss by suicide.

The Somerset Suicide Bereavement Support Service is one of only two in the country that is funded by councils. The money is allocated through Somerset County Council’s public health team.

The service is one of the six strands that aim to prevent suicide, as 60 percent of people with links to someone taking their own life are likely to take theirs, too. It works alongside charity Mind in Taunton and Somerset.

Susan Hoyle. 

“We are incredibly lucky that SCC has put money into the service,” said Susan Hoyle, project manager.

“We are giving support to people within six hours of someone taking their own life.

“We aim to open up the language of suicide, as there is still a lot of stigma.

“Having conversations about mental health is great - but there has to be the services to back it up.”

The suicide bereavement service operates a 24-hour helpline and works with the police, hospitals, coroners and other agencies that can help provide support through the devastating effects of suicide.

The team also provides support and training to schools affected by suicide, as well as a peer support group.

The support group allows people to talk openly about suicide with others who have been through similar experiences.

Rachel and her mum Mandy. 

One young woman, Rachel Perkins, who lost her mum to suicide in July last year, said the support from the service helps her feel more ‘stable’.

“Lots of people looked up to her,” She said.

“She worked at a school and was a mentor to the children.

“Things start to settle down, you start to get into your ‘new normal’ as we call it. But then the inquest takes place and you have to go back through it, finding every detail online. You’re back to that day again.

“I wouldn’t be as stable without the support from the team.”

Rachel, who lives in Taunton, is now choosing to use her experience in the hope of encouraging people to talk about mental health.

She added: “When I talk about mum, people think I’m going to go on and on about suicide. People don’t always know what to say, they get upset and then you end up supporting them.

“The support needs to be there, it helps us to normalise it all and know it’s okay to talk about it.”

Each member of the team specialises in an area of support.

Alison Muir.

Alison Muir, a volunteer for the service who specialises in life coaching, said: “A family member the same age as me was diagnosed with terminal cancer at the end of 2015.

“I realised it could just have easily been me. I didn’t feel as a team manager I was contributing to making the difference I wanted to with my own life, so I decided to train as a Transformational Life Coach. I started volunteering with SSBSS in August 2017 because I believe that we always have a choice, even if we can’t see it, or the choice we make is to do nothing. It made sense to me to try and contribute where there is a feeling of no choice.”

She says relying on charities for this type of support is ‘reckless’ and ‘irresponsible’.

Emma Cummings, a young people’s peer support group facilitator, works with some of the youngest affected by suicide.

She said: “I have worked and volunteered in the voluntary sector for over 20 years including 13 years at the national charity Missing People.

“More recently I have been a volunteer with the Somerset Suicide Bereavement Support Service and a young people’s support worker for Mind in Taunton and West Somerset. I am currently a bereavement support volunteer for Cruse working with children and young people who have experienced a wide range of losses.”

Emma says it is disappointing to see schools losing dedicated counsellors and the children and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) is over-stretched in the county.

A new peer support group for young people bereaved by suicide is starting on June 2. The sessions are for people aged 14-years-old and above and run from noon until 2pm.

Nationally, suicide is more prevalent in males than females. In 2016, 5,965 suicides were registered, a total of 4,508 were male and 1,457 were female.

Bridgwater woman Teri Meare lost her 19-year-old son Haiden to suicide in July 2017. She said he struggled with anxiety and had troubling thoughts, but was still a happy and smiling young man. He self-referred himself for help with Somerset Talking Therapies, but was told there would be a shocking 42-week wait to be seen.

Teri says the biggest help to her has been to talk about her experience with people that know what she’s been through.

Fellow Bridgwater resident, Sam Carr, who lost her father to suicide six years ago, says she can recognise that progress has been made.

“There is much more help available now,” She said.

“GPs are more aware of things now, six years ago it was all still very stigmatised.

“I wouldn’t want anyone to be in the position where they had noone to turn to.”

She said she was particularly affected by the recent portrayal of suicide on soap opera Coronation Street.

She said: “I chose not to watch it, but they still showed clips of it over and over again on daytime telly.

“It reminds us of those moments that we suffer PTSD from.”

Despite the media working with charities such as the Samaritans, there are still concerns it is not being portrayed in a helpful way.

Miss Hoyle worries about an issue known as ‘contagion’, where details of suicide that are published or displayed in TV shows and films can sometimes lead to more suicides.

The group agreed on their dislike for the terminology ‘committed suicide’ as this phrase implies they did something wrong or criminal.

It is not always known if someone is struggling with their mental health, as there are not always obvious symptoms to look out for.

Rachel said the week before her mum took her own life, it was like she had put up a disguise, a brave face, as it appeared on the surface that she was making progress.

Alexandra Lawrence, Taunton, also receives help from the bereavement service. 

In a bid to increase awareness of how mental health and suicide has an impact, she has shared an emotional letter with the County Gazette. 

Read more here: Young woman shares emotional letter to her dad after he took his own life

If you have been affected by this article, are struggling with mental health, or just need someone to talk to, there are a lot of resources to use throughout Somerset.

• Mind in Taunton and West Somerset’s helpline can be reached from Tuesday - Sunday, 8pm -11pm on 01823 276 892. For more information visit mindtws.org.uk
• Taunton Samaritans can be contacted by called 01823 288998 or visiting samaritans.org/branches/samaritans-taunton-and-somerset.
• Cruse Bereavement Care can be reached on 0808 808 1677

For more information on the Somerset Suicide Bereavement Support Service or to attend a peer support group, including the new ROAR group for young people, call 0300 330 5463, email bereaved@mindtws.org.uk or visit suicidebereavement.wixsite.com/somerset.