We are Samaritans
Our vision is that fewer people die by suicide.
Life can be wonderful. Life can be tough. Relationships. Work. Money. Loneliness. Mental health. Self-harm. We can all struggle. 1 in 4 of us have had suicidal thoughts.
Haroon and Josh, Samaritans volunteers in Blackburn
We're always here to listen if you’re in crisis or feeling suicidal.
We raise awareness of people’s experiences, and work with others to campaign for suicide prevention and achieve positive change.
It’s your donations that fund our life saving work, and your support that helps make it possible.
Let’s prevent suicide today. Because tomorrow’s too late.
About Samaritans
- Samaritans is the charity that prevents suicide through the power of human connection
- We're here 24 hours a day, 365 days a year
- Our work is shaped by people with lived experience of suicidal feelings, self-harm or bereavement by suicide
- We work in partnership, for example in prisons and on the rail network, to support people in crisis and train others to do the same
- We're here because of amazing supporters like you. In tough times, your support matters more than ever
- Equity, diversity and inclusion are not add-ons. They underpin how our staff and volunteers relate to one another, and how we connect with the people we support
- Insight leads to action. Our research and policy work helps save lives
- We are a charity spanning the UK and Ireland, powered by more than 20,000 volunteers who are trained to listen
Our priorities
With over 70 years of history, we remain driven by the voices of those we support. Our strategy is grounded in the lived experience of people affected by suicide, self-harm or bereavement by suicide, ensuring we respond to today’s challenges with purpose, compassion and urgency.
In this report you’ll see how, in 2024/25, we worked towards our goals in the five priority areas set out in our strategy:
Access
Make sure anyone who needs us can access our support.
Reach
Reach more people to let them know we’re here.
Impact
Make our voice heard at a national, regional and local level for maximum impact.
Capacity
Increase our capacity to become one team of valued, diverse, skilled people.
Sustainability
Build meaningful relationships with our supporters to ensure our sustainability.
Our work this year has also been guided by our strategic principles, which are the foundation of how we work and behave:
- EDI Equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI)
- Personal experience
- Safety and quality
- Evidence-based
- Vocal and visible
- Innovation and technology
- Environmental responsibility
In spring 2024, due to an uncertain external environment including the cost of living crisis, our Trustees made the decision to extend our current strategic period by two years, to 2029. This gives us more time to deliver the vital work in our plans and ensure we continue making meaningful progress. As part of this, we began a mid-strategy review to ensure we are focussing our efforts where they will have the greatest impact on fewer people dying by suicide. This work is helping us to refine our approach so we remain ambitious, realistic and responsive to the needs of the people we support.
Why we are here
Suicide is not equal. Those living in the most deprived areas of the UK are at higher risk of suicide than those living in the least deprived areas.
Since 2000, self-harm has increased, particularly among young people. Today, 1 in 10 report having self-harmed.
Every 90 minutes someone in the UK or Ireland takes their own life.
Males are around 3 times more likely to die by suicide than females.
1 in 4 of us has had suicidal thoughts at some point in our lives.
For every suicide, it is estimated that 135 people knew the person who died.
In Great Britain, over 4 times more people died by suicide than in road traffic accidents in 2023.
Suicide is the leading cause of death for people under 35 in England and Wales.
Sources
- Office for National Statistics. (2024) Suicides in England and Wales
- National Records of Scotland (2024) Probable suicides 2023.
- Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency. (2024) Suicide statistics 2023
- Central Statistics Office. (2024). Suicide death rates.
- NHS Digital (2025) Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey: Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing, England, 2023/24.
- Department for Transport (2024). Reported road casualties Great Britain, annual report: 2023.
- Office for National Statistics (2020). Suicides by age and IMD quintile, England, 2010 to 2019 registrations combined.
- Cerel, J., Brown, M. M., Maple, M., Singleton, M., van de Venne, J., More, M., & Flaherty, C. (2019). How Many People Are Exposed to Suicide? Not Six. Suicide & life-threatening behavior, 49(2), 529-534.