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Support groups and awareness days

82 peer support groups for people bereaved by suicide, meeting monthly across the UK and online — plus the dates worth knowing.

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  • National Grief Awareness Day

    30 August 2026

    30 August. Useful as a prompt to check on somebody who was bereaved a while ago.

    Widely marked; no single organiser

  • Suicide Prevention Awareness Month

    All of September 2026us

    The whole of September in the US, with World Suicide Prevention Day inside it.

    National Alliance on Mental Illness

  • World Suicide Prevention Day

    10 September 2026

    The main international day, run with the WHO. Most national campaigns anchor to it, and it is the easiest day of the year to get a conversation started at work or at school.

    International Association for Suicide Prevention

  • R U OK? Day

    10 September 2026au

    Australia's national day for asking someone directly. The campaign material is unusually practical about what to say next.

    R U OK?

  • World Mental Health Day

    10 October 2026

    Broader than suicide prevention, and the one most employers already mark.

    World Federation for Mental Health

  • International Survivors of Suicide Loss Day

    Date announced each year

    For people bereaved by suicide. Local events run worldwide, and it is one of the few days aimed squarely at the bereaved rather than at prevention.

    American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

  • Time to Talk Day

    Date announced each yeargb

    A UK day built entirely around starting conversations. Usually early February.

    Mind and Rethink Mental Illness

  • Mental Health Awareness Week

    Date announced each yeargb

    UK-wide, usually in May, with a different theme each year announced in advance.

    Mental Health Foundation

  • Mental Health Awareness Month

    All of May 2027us

    May, in the US. Broad mental health rather than suicide specifically.

    Mental Health America

  • Samaritans Awareness Day

    24 July 2027gb

    24 July — 24/7, for a service that runs around the clock. Part of a wider month of Samaritans activity.

    Samaritans

  • National Grief Awareness Day

    30 August 2027

    30 August. Useful as a prompt to check on somebody who was bereaved a while ago.

    Widely marked; no single organiser

  • Suicide Prevention Awareness Month

    All of September 2027us

    The whole of September in the US, with World Suicide Prevention Day inside it.

    National Alliance on Mental Illness

  • R U OK? Day

    9 September 2027au

    Australia's national day for asking someone directly. The campaign material is unusually practical about what to say next.

    R U OK?

  • World Suicide Prevention Day

    10 September 2027

    The main international day, run with the WHO. Most national campaigns anchor to it, and it is the easiest day of the year to get a conversation started at work or at school.

    International Association for Suicide Prevention

Dates that move — Time to Talk Day, Mental Health Awareness Week, International Survivors of Suicide Loss Day — are announced by their organisers each year, so we show no date rather than a guess.

Groups you can join online

No travel, no geography, and several are for specific groups of people. These are the easiest ones to try first.

  • Police Families Virtual Group

    This is a virtual group held on 1st Tuesday of every month from 7.00pm until 8.30pm. This group is for the families of Police Officers and Police Staff, serving or retired

    police.families@uksobs.org · 0115 944 1117

  • BereaveMENt (Men's Only Group)

    This is a virtual group held on 2nd Tuesday of every month from 7:30pm until 9:00pm

    bereaveMENt@uksobs.org · 01159 441 117

  • National Virtual Support Group

    This is a virtual group held on 3rd Tuesday of every month

    national.zoom@uksobs.org · No contact number

  • Police Virtual Group

    This is a virtual group held on 4th Wednesday of every month from 7.00pm until 8.30pm. This group is for Police Officers and Police Staff, serving or retired

    police@uksobs.org · 0115 944 1117

  • SpeakOUT Virtual Group

    This virtual group meets on the last Monday of every month and is open to anyone who identifies as LGBTQ+, or who has lost an LGBTQ+ loved one to suicide. Please note: July's group will be held on Tuesday 4th August, instead of the usual Monday.

    speakout@uksobs.org · No contact number

Groups that meet in person

Contact the group before turning up — they will tell you where they meet, and they ask for at least three days’ notice. Exact venues are kept private on purpose, so they are not listed here.

Central England

London

Northern England

Scotland

Southern England

Wales

All 82 groups from Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide (SOBS), retrieved 5 August 2026. Locations are deliberately not stored. SOBS keep exact venues private and ask people to contact the group directly.

Running something?

We are not taking listings directly yet. The groups above come from SOBS and are re-checked against their own pages — the alternative is somebody travelling across a county on a Tuesday evening for a group that stopped meeting two years ago.

In the meantime, tell us about it and we will look.