Gift Announcement
Self-harm and Suicide Prevention
Footballer Joe Cole and wife Carly are helping discover how we can better help young people experiencing suicidal thoughts and self-harm through their 11 Foundation, with a gift of £30,000 to support vital youth mental health research at the University of Birmingham.
The couple’s 11 Foundation creates unique collaborations that inspire, educate and empower young people to fulfil their potential, and improve their life opportunities for a better future.
The University’s research is made extra powerful by working with The Youth Advisory Group (YAG); 18 young people aged between 18-25 who meet monthly meetings to discuss research ideas.
Lizzie Mitchell, who struggled to get support when she was facing depression, anxiety and eating disorders, says: ‘Being involved in the Youth Advisory Group means I finally feel like I have a voice. I can use my experiences to help others and improve the system. We can fill in the gaps, because we’ve been in the gaps.’
Dr Maria Michail and Dr Anna Lavis are leading experts in the field of self-harm and suicide prevention. They seek to understand the underlying factors that drive self-harming and suicidal behaviour in young people to develop targeted interventions, which could lead to improved clinical practice, policy-making and community practices.
We are so grateful to the 11 FOUNDATION for their generous donation. Joe and Carly’s gift will allow us to pump-prime new research to develop key principles for much-needed, new peer support models for self-harm and suicide prevention in young people. Our aim is ultimately to help build capacity in the mental health service system as well as offer alternative support options for young people in crisis.
Dr Michail