The British Psychological Society has collaborated with the Mental Health Academy to host the UK’s largest online suicide prevention conference for mental health professionals.

It is estimated that suicide affects around 900,000 people in the UK each year, and its social and emotional costs are enormous.

Held on the weekend following World Suicide Prevention Day on 10 September, the two-day free online event will help to equip therapists, practitioners and other professionals with crucial suicide prevention techniques.

Professor Rory O’Connor, a chartered member of the BPS from the University of Glasgow and President of the International Association of Suicide Prevention, who will be speaking at the event, said:

‘Between 6,000 and 7,000 people in the UK die by suicide each year. With research showing that each of these deaths affects an average of 135 people, the impact of suicide is enormous.

‘I’m delighted to be speaking at this free summit for mental health professionals. The impact of suicide is not something that is confined to any one country or continent, so it is great to see colleagues from across the world joining us. I hope that it will allow us to share the latest research and suicide prevention techniques to ultimately save lives.’

Pedro Gondim, chief executive of the Mental Health Academy, added: ‘Through this summit, we are able to connect world-leading experts with professionals on the ground, providing them with up-to-date knowledge and evidence-based tools that will hopefully save more lives. This is a global, collective effort to reduce the number of people affected by suicide, and we all have a role to play.’

Experts from  Australia, Pakistan, UK, and the US will be speaking at the event, which is free for mental health professionals to attend. Clinicians can also register for on-demand access to the sessions following the event, until 10 October.