Who We Work With

On average, Australians spend 35 hours a week at work – which is most of our waking hours. Nearly all jobs involve some degree of stress and everyday stressors outside of work can impact on staff mental health. Workplace leaders, managers and staff are in a unique position to recognise when their colleagues are thinking of suicide and respond to keep them safe. Upskilling staff in suicide prevention can create a network of safety for employees and even save lives.   

We are proud to work with the following organisations to keep workplace communities safe from suicide: WorkSafe Victoria, Australian Veterinarians Association, Mates in Construction, Mates in Mining, Mates in Energy, Thompson Institute University of Sunshine Coast

Children and young people are at an increased risk of suicide thoughts and behaviours, and suicide is the leading cause of death for Australians aged 15-24 years. But many young people are more likely to reach out to a friend or trusted adult during a difficult time, rather than a professional service. That’s why students, teachers, school staff, lecturers, tutors and principals need to be trained in suicide prevention so that they can recognise when a student is thinking of suicide, intervene early and connect them to care.

Free training is currently available to NSW school teachers, parents, carers and broader communities. Read about this initiative with NSW Health here.

We are proud to work with the following organisations to keep their education community safe from suicide:ACT Department of Education, NSW Department of Education, Victoria Department of Education, Monash University, SA Education Department, and NT Education – with support via Orygen (research) and Lifeline (as providers of our training).

General practitioners, nurses, surgeons and allied health professionals are in frequent contact with the community and in many cases get to know their client’s lives, not just their medical history. Whether it is physical symptoms because of emotional strain, or mental distress because of physical pain/injury – health professionals are in a unique position to recognise when someone is going through a tough time. By training in suicide prevention, health professionals will be able to identify when someone is having thoughts of suicide and intervene early, potentially saving their life.

We are proud to work with the following organisations to keep their community safe from suicide: NSW Ministry of Health, North Western Melbourne Primary Health Network, South Eastern Melbourne Primary Health Network, Western Victoria Primary Health Network, Brisbane North Primary Health Network, Central Queensland Primary Health Network, Country SA PHN, Victoria Department of Health, SA Health, Northern Territory Primary Health Network.

First responders have extensive training in how to keep people physically safe. They are encouraged to keep skills, such as CPR, up to date as part of their professional and personal toolkit, but what about when it comes to keeping someone (the community, colleagues, a family member or even themselves) safe from suicide? We know first-hand from first responders that many of the situations faced on the job increasingly involve people in mental distress and expressing suicidal behaviour. We also know suicidal thinking is higher within the first responder community than the general public, due to frequent exposure to traumatic events. Upskilling in suicide first aid enables first responders to confidently reach into moments of crisis and be an effective support on the job, at home and for themselves.

We are proud to work with the following organisations to keep their first responder community safe from suicide: Fire & Rescue NSW, Fortem Australia, Ambulance NSW, Ambulance QLD, Department of Home Affairs, Victoria Police, Fire Rescue Victoria.

Suicide within the ex-service community is more prevalent than the general population. Recent research shows that the suicide rate is 21% higher in ex serving men than the Australian male population, and 2 times higher for ex serving women than the Australian female population. Post-traumatic stress and transitioning out of military back into the community can take a toll on the mental health of veterans. Teaching suicide prevention skills to the defence and veteran community, as well as their families, can help protect our protectors by spotting the signs they might be thinking of suicide and connecting them to support early on.

We are proud to work with the following organisations to keep their defence community safe from suicide: Open Arms, Australian Defence Force, RSLs Australia

People working in customer service spend their days liaising with community members, some of which are experiencing heightened levels of distress due to difficult circumstances. As a result, customer service and telecommunication workers become incidental interventionalists, where they are tasked with responding to people experiencing thoughts of suicide and de-escalating situations. Providing suicide prevention training for customer service staff gives them the confidence to manage conversations with people having thoughts of suicide and the ability to connect them to the right type of support.

We are proud to work with the following organisations to keep their community safe from suicide: Service NSW, Insurance Industry Call Centre staff, Anxiety Recovery Centre Victoria (ARCVic), State Debt Recovery Office NSW.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, Culturally and Linguistically Diverse people, LGBTIQA+ people, young people and men have significantly higher rates of suicide ideation, behaviour and suicide than the general population. It should be acknowledged that priority populations are not intrinsically more at risk of suicidal behaviour, but rather these individuals may experience greater rates of discrimination, isolation and other forms of social exclusion which can impact on suicidal thinking and behaviour.

At LivingWorks, we recognise that each community has unique needs. That is why we take a co-design approach in adapting training and supporting resources to better reach priority populations and keep them safe from suicide. Our latest co-designed programs include: I-ASIST (Indigenous ASIST), safeYARN, safeTALK in Schools, LGBTIQA+ ASIST and LGBTIQA+ safeTALK.

We are proud to work with the following organisations to keep their community safe from suicide: LGBTIQ+ Health Australia, Switchboard, Thorne Harbour Health, Twenty10, QLife, University of Queensland, Anglicare Northern Territory, Healing Works Australia, Centre of Best Practice in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Suicide Prevention, Thirrili, Orygen Youth Mental Health, Thompson Institute USC.

Sometimes stresses and strains of life – like financial problems, physical pain, unemployment, relationship breakdown – can build up to the point where an individual experiences thoughts of suicide. The people we interact with, whether it is a local café owner, sporting coach, local GP, partner, colleague or friend can recognise when someone isn’t quite themselves and as a result may become an accidental interventionalist. However, knowing what to say and do when someone is distressed is difficult. That’s why we work with individuals and community organisations to upskill everyday Australians in suicide first aid, so that they can feel more confident in recognising the signs someone is thinking of suicide, starting a conversation and keeping them safe by connecting them to care.

We are proud to work with the following organisations to keep their community safe from suicide: Listen Up, St Kilda Football Club, Mateship Matters, Lifeline Australia, StandBy, Crisis Heroes, Primary Health Networks (PHNs), NSW Ministry of Health and various grassroots community organisations across the country.