Ealing Samaritans volunteers mounted one of their biggest ever efforts with this week’s activity at Ealing Broadway railway station to launch Samaritans' Real People, Real Stories campaign.
Ann McLaughlin, Director of Ealing Samaritans who was there (pictured above) said: "We were delighted to play our part in launching this important campaign which is supported by National Rail. It’s aimed at men aged 20-59 years of age and shows other men who have overcome tough times sharing their stories."
Ten Ealing volunteers gave up their time for a series of five two-hour visits to the west London station which is a major interchange for national rail and a number of Transport for London services.
The Ealing teams gave away Real People, Real Stories campaign contact cards and suggested they pass it on to male family members or friends.
Suicide is the biggest killer of men under 50, with men aged 20-59 at the highest risk.
A survey by Samaritans found that two in five (41%) men in England, Scotland and Wales aged 20-59 do not seek support when they need to, because they prefer to solve their problems themselves. This group includes men who are most at risk of suicide
The two-month Real People, Real Stories campaign aims to overcome the stigma around men seeking help when they're struggling and will be running until 5 May.
Ann added: "The campaign features real people, sharing their stories and telling others that when life gets tough, Samaritans are there to listen 24/7 on 116 123.”
Show Us Your Support
All Samaritans branches are individual charities run entirely by volunteers. Ealing, Hammersmith and Hounslow Samaritans (registered charity no. 1173588) is only able to provide emotional support thanks to the donations and legacies and fundraising by our supporters. Here are some ways for you to show us your support
- Make a donation direct to the Samaritans of Ealing bank account: CAF Bank, sort code 40-52-40 account number 00031116.
- Go to our JustGiving page.
- Alternatively, if you use Amazon, switch to Amazon Smile and help Ealing Samaritans every time you shop. We can get 0.5% of your spend donated by Amazon to Ealing Samaritans if you shop through smile.amazon.co.uk You’ll find just the same prices, product selection and shopping experience but there is the added bonus -- to us -- is that Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of goods purchased direct to Ealing Samaritans. This doesn’t in any way increase the cost of a given item on Amazon. The company makes a slightly lower margin on what you buy. Sign up here: https://smile.amazon.co.uk/ch/1173588-0