Working with young people to prevent self-harm and suicide
CB Plus is proud to be a partner on Early Action, a research and prevention project working to understand how we can better support young people before self-harm and suicidal thoughts emerge. This is a joint project with King’s College London, Papyrus UK, and Speakers Collective.
What is the Early Action project?
Self-harm and suicidal thoughts often begin during early adolescence. Most prevention efforts are introduced in secondary school, but by then, opportunities to step in earlier may already have been missed.
Early Action is focused on that window. Rather than responding after the fact, the project asks: what kinds of support work best before these experiences begin? What feels acceptable and accessible to young people? What actually reaches them?
The project is funded through an Innovation Lab run by the UKRI Population Mental Health Consortium. It brings together clinical research, community knowledge, lived experience, and the voluntary sector to find answers that work in the real world, not just in theory.
How does it work?
The project uses co-design, which means young people, parents, and carers are involved in shaping the work from the start, not consulted at the end.
CB Plus’s role in the project
Early Action is led for CB Plus by Zoe Kattah, Director of Young People’s Wellbeing, through our Young People Thrive service. Zoe is a joint project lead alongside Dr Amanda Bye from King’s College London, Jon Salmon from Speakers Collective, and Alex Hills from Papyrus UK.
Young People Thrive works directly with young people and families across London, and it is that on-the-ground knowledge of our communities that CB Plus brings to this partnership.
Our partners
Early Action brings together clinical research, community knowledge, lived experience, and the voluntary sector. Each partner contributes something distinct, and it is that combination that makes the project work.
King’s College London
The project is led academically by Dr Amanda Bye, King’s Maudsley Partnership for Children and Young People Translational Research Fellow, based within the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at King’s College London.
Papyrus UK
The UK’s leading charity for the prevention of young suicide. Alex Hills, Head of Services at Papyrus, is a joint lead on the Early Action project. Papyrus runs HOPELINE247, a free and confidential support line for young people under 35 experiencing thoughts of suicide.
Speakers Collective
A social enterprise using the power of lived experience to challenge stigma and open up conversations about mental health and social issues. Jon Salmon from Speakers Collective is a joint lead on the Early Action project.
Get in touch
The Early Action team welcomes questions from anyone interested in the project, whether you’re a young person, a parent or carer, a professional, or an organisation wanting to find out more.
