The Prince of Wales said the UK is in need of more suicide prevention centres to cope with the worryingly high rates of young men who take their own lives in the UK.
William was opening a new centre run by James’ Place, a charity which provides free therapy for men in suicidal crisis.
He met both staff and men whose lives have been saved by the charity at its three other locations.
James’ Place was founded in memory of James Wentworth-Stanley, a Newcastle University student, who took his own life in 2006 at age 21. This year marks 20 years since his death.
At the end of the visit, James’ mother, Clare Milford Haven, thanked William for his ongoing support to the charity in front of a plaque and a photo of James.
He then spoke to the staff and guests gathered in the garden, saying: ‘I can only hope that we can get… your organisation more around the UK because it’s in need of it sadly.
‘We need to talk more about suicide, we need to talk more about preventing it. We need to talk more about getting to young men and women earlier so that we don’t have to have these centres in the very long run, in the distant future, that’s the ultimate aim.
‘Just a huge thank you to all of you for all your hard work in helping a lot of men through true crisis and seeing some wonderful guys come out the back end of it, feeling much better, stronger, ready to go again at life, is what it’s all about so well done to all of you.’
Prince William was all smiles as he arrived in Birmingham to open a new suicide prevention centre for men
The Prince of Wales met staff and service users at the new centre, James’ Place, as well as members of the National Suicide Prevention Network
Milford Haven then presented a James’ Place hoodie to the prince and her other son, Harry Wentworth-Stanley, for the ultra-endurance triathlon he is undertaking to fundraise for a fifth clinic.
William joked: ‘I think mine might be a little bit cleaner than yours by the end of your [challenge.’
Since 2018, the charity’s three existing centres have saved over 5,100 men’s lives. The charity only supports men, who account for over 75 per cent of suicides in the UK.
A team of trained therapists at the Birmingham centre will be able to see around 450 to 500 men a year.
William has opened all of the charity’s existing centres, Liverpool, London and Newcastle Each centre costs at least £2.5million to set up and run for three years.
While meeting staff who had worked across multiple sites, he said: ‘You know I get people come and stop me about the Newcastle site… I’ve had so many people stop me and say James’ Place in Newcastle saved my life.’
The building, which looks like a residential home from the outside, was designed to appear calm, with soft furnishings and artwork, rather than clinical. An architect renovated the property pro bono, before opening for referrals four weeks ago.
The Prince of Wales wore a sky blue shirt and a claret tie in an apparent nod to his beloved Aston Villa as he met staff at James’ Place
James’ Place was founded in memory of James Wentworth-Stanley, who took his own life in 2006 at age 21 (pictured next to a plaque marking the opening of the centre today)
James’ Place hopes to open a fifth centre by 2027, which will allow them to treat up to 2,000 men per year.
William asked several questions about the charity’s expansion.
While meeting senior figures of the charity, he said: ‘How nationally can you do it? I’m looking to you guys as the leading experts now in this space… can we get every part of the UK covered by James’ Place? Is that possible?’
Currently men can self-refer or be referred by a healthcare professional to James’ Place. They typically receive six to eight face-to-face sessions with a trained therapist.
William also met four men whose lives had been saved by the other centres.
One joked that William was wearing Aston Villa colours, to which William replied: ‘It wasn’t deliberate…I promise you it’s the first tie I chose from the cupboard this morning.’
He then asked the men how James’ Place had helped them. They replied referencing the informal setting of the buildings and the lack of waiting list, allowing men to be seen within two days of a referral.
One of the men in the conversation was Ben Brand, 33, a father-of-two from Bedford, who received help from the London centre after having a new baby and finding him in suicidal crisis.
He said afterwards: ‘The conversation got very deep but it was very good though. He was asking us questions, we were asking him questions, it was real candid, kind of man-to-man chat really.
‘He didn’t open up about himself but he was very interested in us and in our experiences and how James’ Place helped all of us.’
Brand added the importance of the prince’s voice on the subject of mental health.
‘Someone of [his status] being open about it, promoting it, saying it’s ok,’ he said. ‘He’s been open about his mental health in the past. If he can do it, anyone can really.’
In October, James’ Place became one of five founding partners of the new National Suicide Prevention Network (NSPN), established by The Royal Foundation of The Prince and Princess of Wales.
Through the network, funding from The Royal Foundation is supporting James’ Place to pilot two new satellite services over 12 months in the North East and North West of England, expanding access to free, life-saving therapy in community-based settings.
Ellen O’Donoghue, chief executive of James’s Place, showed William a map of referrals across the country and how the new hubs had allowed them to access more men.
Speaking afterwards, Milford Haven described the impact of William’s visit.
‘I just feel so honoured I think we all do, so appreciative of the huge interest that the Prince of Wales takes in suicide prevent and in particular in James’ Place,’ she said.
‘He’s always been so supportive of what we do and he gave us a huge compliment today by saying that what we do is ‘gold standard’.
I couldn’t ask for more, I couldn’t ask for a better person to be supporting us, so genuine and authentic and special for me, my family and the team at James’ Place.’
