“We have now undertaken RTS1 and RTS2 training within Durham Constabulary. These sessions have been beneficial to those attending and it is apparent that the colleagues attending took away learning regardless of their role or level of experience. The trainers have great knowledge and provide learning in an informative and interactive way, and we will hopefully run further sessions in the future”
I thought the course was really beneficial, and this should be mandatory for all officers joining, even us “old sweats” who have dealt with many suicide incidents it was great to have the training and I definitely picked up some new practices in dealing, I know the subject is a sensitive subject but it needs to be spoken about.
Highly recommended!
I attended the one-day RTS2 suicide prevention and awareness training. This was an incredibly insightful subject which is highly recommended to all emergency services. The staff are incredibly knowledgeable, highly motivated and articulate at passing their skills and experience to us learners. The course allows us as first line responders the opportunity to learn better verbal and nonverbal skills to use with persons feeling suicidal, the instructors also teach better approaches towards bereaved family and friends.
This course is a must for those personnel and leaders who find themselves not only dealing with suicidal members of the public but also identifying the stressors and trauma that may be experienced in our own personnel attending traumatic incidents. We are exposed to primary traumatic events, such as conflict, Road Traffic Collisions (RTC), Domestic Abuse (DA) and death, this does have a detrimental effect to the stress of emergency personnel due to the critical decisions we are required to make while in attendance. However, indirect exposure to secondary trauma such as the continuous mental stressors’ emergency personnel are required to experience when dealing with the emotions of victims, witnesses, and suspects, along with taking accounts of events and listening to the harrowing emergency calls, will also contribute to the degradation of emergency personnel’s mental resilience.
RTS4 training is essential for clinical practitioners from all professional backgrounds, as well as for managers working across Adult and Young People’s mental health services. The training provided a strong evidence-informed framework that is directly relevant to day-to-day clinical practice and leadership responsibilities. The trainers were highly insightful, drawing effectively on their own professional and lived experience, and they engaged participants in a respectful, reflective, and inclusive manner that encouraged open discussion and shared learning.The training explored valuable data in depth, particularly around emerging trends, as well as key precipitating and perpetuating factors that influence risk and clinical outcomes. These areas were examined thoughtfully and systematically, significantly enhancing our understanding and strengthening our ability to develop robust, formulation-driven interventions. The balance between theory, practical application, and reflective discussion ensured that learning was both meaningful and transferable to real-world clinical settings.Overall, RTS4 training offers practical, immediately applicable skills and clearly signposts relevant support services within the wider community, promoting safer and more collaborative practice. I would strongly recommend RTS4 training to all practitioners and managers, as it meaningfully enhances confidence, competence, and consistency when working with complex risk presentations.
Course opens up some valuable discussions and awareness into a subject matter that is not talked about enough. Course providers were excellent with the delivery and encouraged a good working forum. The course has given me much more confidence on how to approach talking about suicide awareness and providing help to those struggling
Great course, every operational officer should do this
I am part of the Men’s support network for Northumbria police, I am also a Federation representative and response sgt working in Newcastle city centre. This training has been incredibly beneficial for all 3 of these roles.
Course opens up some valuable discussions and awareness into a subject matter that is not talked about enough. Course providers were excellent with the delivery and encouraged a good working forum. The course has given me much more confidence on how to approach talking about suicide awareness and providing help to those struggling.
I attended the RTS2 training in my role with Public Health, with 18 years previous experience as a Police Officer. The course was expertly delivered but in a relaxed and engaging way that made the day informative and enjoyable – not something I can usually say, working in the field of suicide prevention. The trainers have a wealth of experience between them, they are natural trainers, using innovative ways to deliver a difficult topic and getting the most out of attendees. I can’t recommend this course enough to anyone who may deal with people who are feeling suicidal.
It is over a year since I attended this training session, but the resources gathered on the day are still in use and visible in our RNLI station. Now that several colleagues have completed the training we have been able to discuss the subject and consider how our practice could be amended, as well as cascade some of the learning to the wider team. The RTS course was excellent and I would highly recommend it to any first responder. The facilitators expertly ensured that there was ample audience participation and discussion. If there is a follow up or subsequent training I would attend.
Through my various roles in the Fire Service, I’ve done a lot of training around mental health and suicide. This course looked at things in a very different way, and having two people in the room who could talk from personal experience was really thought-provoking and added a level of realism that really helped bring home how important good support for families is. I came away with some really tangible ways to support people bereaved by suicide. I’m so grateful to Angela and Sharon for sharing their stories and making a very difficult subject easier to understand.
“I have been a Police Officer for 15 years, during this time I have been a first responder to suicide but also bereaved by suicide through a sibling. Even with my experience of suicide, the training really opened my eyes to the wider subject matter delivered by amazing trainers whose knowledge and experience shone through. The variety of the training course was effective and it motivated the group to positively engage which resulted in some very good open conversations. The training resources were also impressive and professional with a lot of useful information provided electronically for future reference and sign posting. I would certainly be keen to return and complete any similar training.”
“This event provides time and space to both listen and learn but also to reflect. As a paramedic who has attended deaths by suicide and experienced the loss of colleagues taking their own lives I cannot understate the importance of understanding the impacts on families, friends and even distant acquaintances. To have the honour of learning from people with lived experience is inspirational and will leave a lasting impression on your teams.”
This training has value in better understanding and guiding a caring response to those bereaved by suicide. It’s an issue colleagues not only encounter in operational roles, but also within the communities we live, and the organisations in which we work – so the impact that sensitive , compassionate and supportive response can make is immense. Knowledgeable trainers, engaging delivery. I attended a multi-agency training event which helped maximise sharing of local knowledge and collective understanding which was an added bonus.
I found this course very insightful and educational, it has left me with a greater awareness around the topic especially when talking about suicide or attending these types of incidents. I think the course is of greatest benefit when it’s a group of different agencies. Very worthwhile attending for anyone who may respond to suicide incidents.
As an operational Watch manager at Thornaby fire station which specialises in water rescue for the Brigade area, we deal with many incidents involving suicide or attempted suicide. We tend to deal with such incidents in a professional manner similar to the way we deal with all our incidents by trying to ensure the safety of our crews whilst hopefully saving life as we often do. We perhaps sometimes don’t give enough thought to the individual or their families or the impact we as professionals can have in those initial moments. The RTS training was presented brilliantly in a way that captivated all that attended and in future as incident commander I will be more aware and hopefully be able to give extra support to those affected including my own crews.
Excellent course for anyone who manages people in the emergency services. Gave me more of an insight of the role we play been the first on scene at a suicide incident. It made me realise the impact that we can have on people at there worst times. Really informative and well presented for a difficult subject and valuable discussion have been raised by the issues of mental health in our service.
As a Paramedic of 18 years, I have often attended those who have died by suicide, and always felt out of my depth when speaking to families or friends around the patient, what do you actually say to someone who’s loved one you cannot help. Hearing the lived experience of Angela opened my eyes as to how the small gestures matter, how the blanket around a shoulder, a separate space or even just a shoulder to lean on is important. It is invaluable training for anyone who will come into contact with the relatives of those who have died by suicide, to better understand how the things we say and how we act may have an impact on the family for may years to come.
Just a quick note to say how much I enjoyed the ‘Responding to Suicide’ course that I attended yesterday, it really is one of the best courses that I have been lucky enough to complete in my 23 years in NIAS. It was informative, useful, emotional and practical and I feel that it will be so beneficial for me in my current Station Officer role, from either the perspective of responding to calls or supporting staff that have attended calls involving suicide and it has also enhanced my ability to support staff that may be struggling emotionally themselves.
Can I just add that the lived experiences of Angela and Lee were so meaningful and so beneficial from the perspective of giving us (as first responder emergency personnel), an insight into the needs of the people that we will potentially be dealing with when responding to an emergency call involving suicide. I felt that the training was very enlightening and will certainly enhance my practice as a Paramedic and has enhanced my understanding around suicide immensely. In my opinion, this course is a must for all emergency personnel.
Thank you for the hard work and dedication that it has surely taken to create and deliver this training.
Can I just say again, the delivery was superb, with the key strength being both trainers in my eyes.
The way in which they described their own personal experience of suicide was just so powerful and will stay with me a lifetime. As a result my interactions and response at any future death by suicide will be directly as a result of the RTS training and the detailed insight they provided.
This training is a must for any emergency service provider and is a credit to you all!