Potens 2017 chosen charity is the Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM) – a charty dedicated to preventing male suicide, the single biggest killer of men under the age of 45 in the UK. Every day on average 12 men take their own life, at an estimated cost of £20m.
There were 6,117 suicides in the UK in 2015 of which 75%, or 4618, were male (NISRA, GRO, ONS). Male suicide has an enormous emotional impact on those bereaved, who are then much more likely to take their own lives.
CALM works to prevent male suicide by providing frontline services for men, promoting cultural change and campaigning for better understanding of suicide and prevention.
CALM was founded in 2006, and in the first ten years of operation have helped treble awareness of male suicide in the UK (YouGov). Demand for CALM’s services are steadily increasing; currently someone tries to access the helpline/webchat every two minutes (during open hours, 5pm-midnight daily).
In 2015, CALM’s #BiggerIssues campaign, delivered in partnership with Lynx, reached an online audience of 23 million, increased awareness of male suicide by 45%, and helped secure the first ever parliamentary debate on male suicide.
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