The Tomorrow Project/ Harmless CIC

Harmless is a user led organisation that provides counselling, information, training and consultancy to people who are at risk of self harm, suicidal thoughts and intent; their friends, families and professionals. Harmless was developed by people who understand self-harm and the factors that increase the risk of suicide. At the heart of our service is a real sense of hope, we know that with the appropriate help life experiences can be improved. Harmless manages The Tomorrow Project, an outreach suicide prevention programme commissioned by the Nottingham City CCG to raise awareness, encourage help-seeking by people at risk and to reduce the stigma attached to mental health issues. Key Services Provided: Support for young people between the ages of 11-19 years – Workshops for professionals, supporting them to work effectively with issues relating to – self-harm/suicide – Workshops for parents/carers – Informal support

How does your organisation contribute to preventing suicide and supporting those affected by it?

In line with the Suicide Prevention Strategy (2011) Harmless and The Tomorrow Project have implemented a city wide roll out to promote early intervention with those who do, or are at risk of self harming or suicide. This project has worked across communities with the following model of working.

– Direct access information services, to schools and communities working with those at risk.

– Provision of information materials to promote awareness and understanding of these issues, encouraging appropriate help seeking.

– Provide small scale packages of development to take the form of, talks, meetings and advice to carers and professionals regarding working with people at risk.

– Provide talks, meetings, advice and informal support directly to people who are at risk of self harm or suicide; the aim of this provision is to promote help seeking, and establish the presentation and need to facilitate appropriate referrals.

– To provide a priority response where there has been an incidence of suicide; providing support and information for the bereaved.

– Harmless and the Tomorrow Project promotes its self harm and suicide prevention training packages working collaboratively with Statutory, Private and third/Voluntary sector organisations; raising awareness and challenging the stigma attached to mental health issues.

– Harmless has been involved with a number of research projects undertaken by Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University. Clinical data collected from the therapeutic work undertaken within Harmless forms part of the current research of these educational establishments.

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What are your current priorities?

• Support for young people between the ages of 11-19 years

• Workshops for professionals, supporting them to work effectively with issues relating to self-harm/suicide

• Workshops for parents/carers

• Informal support

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What challenges are you currently facing?

• By investing time, building trust and working collaboratively with different agencies we develop key relationships that support positive engagement with our services.

• We offer transparency to our work and ethos by inviting organisations to meet with Harmless and Tomorrow Project team to develop increased awareness of the issues relating to self harm and suicide.

• We accomplish the breaking down of the barriers of stigma relating to self harm and suicide by creating and maintaining direct relationships with other organisations.

• Provision of streamlined targeted interventions in the form of bespoke packages, flexibly presenting a spectrum of guidance from emotional health, wellbeing and resilience to more direct training relating to self harm and suicide prevention. The ability to respond flexibly to each organisation’s perception of the subject of mental health and risk enables Harmless and The Tomorrow Project to effectively promote our service and establish trusting relationships.

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