Suicide Prevention and Awareness, QPR

QPR Gatekeeper Training

In just two hours, you can learn effective suicide awareness and prevention skills: to recognise the signs of suicidal thinking, ask the right questions, and guide someone towards safety. QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer) training is a short, practical workshop designed to give anyone — therapist or not — the skills to save a life.

Just as CPR helps you respond to a cardiac emergency, QPR gives you a simple, evidence-based framework to respond to someone in emotional crisis. It’s not therapy or counselling, it’s about noticing the warning signs, offering hope, and linking people to the right support.

Why Suicide Awareness Matters

• Suicide remains a leading cause of preventable death worldwide.
• Around 1 in 12 people who take QPR training use it to directly support someone at risk.
• Even if you don’t work with suicidality as a presenting issue, you might be surprised how often risk factors show up in everyday situations: things like sleep issues, job loss, bereavement, hopelessness, or chronic stress.

Not all therapy training covers suicide awareness and prevention. QPR fills that gap, giving you confidence to respond calmly and effectively if a client, colleague, or loved one is struggling.

The purpose of QPR is to allow anyone to save a life, just like people trained in First Aid or Abdominal Thrusts (previously the Heimlich Manoeuvre). Gatekeepers can be therapists, parents, friends, medical staff, co-workers, and many others who may be in contact with someone at risk of suicide.

What You’ll Learn

By the end of this two-hour Zoom course, you will:

• Understand common myths and truths about suicide
• Recognise clues and warning signs of suicidal thinking
• Know how to respond to both direct and indirect expressions of intent
• Know the questions to ask, and how to ask them sensitively
• Learn how to offer hope and persuade someone to stay alive until they can access trained support
• Be clear on where and how to refer people for specialist help

QPR Course Format and Support

• Duration: 2 hours (via Zoom)
• Availability: worldwide (in-person sessions are available in Castleford on request)
• Resources included:
  • Access to private resources page online
  • Certificate of completion from the QPR Institute
  • QPR Gatekeeper handbook, videos, and practice materials
  • QPR Gatekeeper card for easy reference

This course is interactive but supportive, with time to ask questions and reflect. You’ll leave with a practical, evidence-based approach you can use in everyday life or professional practice.

Who Can Learn QPR?

This course is open to:

• Therapists and wellbeing practitioners (CPD recognised)
• Teachers, managers, HR professionals, and community leaders
• Parents, friends, or anyone who simply wants to be prepared to help

No prior knowledge or training is needed.

Sign Up to Learn QPR Suicide Awareness and Prevention Skills

• Course fee: £40 per person
• Discounts:
  • If you’d like to save 10%, sign up to our newsletter before booking: a subscriber discount code will be in our welcome email.
  • Group rates available for schools, workplaces, peer groups, or professional organisations: contact me for details.
• Frequency: Held 2–3 times per year (available dates below).

BOOKINGS – Take Two Hours to Make a Difference

Sometimes, a simple conversation can change the course of someone’s life. QPR training gives you the tools to start that conversation with confidence. In just two hours, you’ll gain skills that stay with you: skills that could save a life.

Choose a date now and be prepared to help when it matters.