Suicide Crisis
744. Joy Hibbins
Joy Hibbins, from Gloucestershire, is the founder and driving force behind ‘Suicide Crisis’, an innovative charity helping people at risk of suicide.
Joy set up the ‘Suicide Crisis’ emergency phone line in 2012 after suffering an experience that was personally traumatic. This service gives members of the local community who are contemplating suicide access to trained professionals who can assess the risk of each individual phone-call. Callers are invited to come into the ‘Suicide Crisis’ Centre in Cheltenham or offered home visits, depending on need. Joy also publicly raises awareness about suicide, writing for national media and supporting parliament and government in inquiries. ‘Suicide Crisis’ has already seen 1,000 clients and has plans to expand the model to other counties in future.
Joy said:
“I’m very grateful to the Prime Minister for this award, and feel that it celebrates the work of our exceptional team of volunteers. We all feel privileged and honoured to be able to support people at such a vulnerable time in their lives. Their survival matters so much to us – we want to do all that we can to help them stay alive.”