Kelly’s Heroes
Charity heroes bring baton of hope to the county
Mental health and suicide prevention charity, Kelly’s Heroes has been announced as the Northamptonshire Project Lead for the 2025 Baton of Hope Tour. With the tour – which is dedicated to reducing suicides across
the country with the powerful message that there is always hope and help available – set to make its way to the county for the fi rst time in 2025, the charity welcomed the news it had been selected as project lead. As suicide rates rise, Sherry Adams, CEO of Kelly’s Heroes
highlighted how the Baton of Hope Tour is a unique opportunity for Northamptonshire to shine on a national stage, encouraging everyone to come together to raise awareness and promote hope and recovery. Sherry said: “We are delighted to be appointed project lead for the
tour. T e application process was tough, but what an achievement for us to be able to bring Northamptonshire into this nationwide event. “T e tour is going to be bigger in 2025 and rather than covering
12 counties, it will cover 20 in total. We are looking for businesses and people to form part of a working group to help us put the project together to make it a success, to put Northamptonshire on the map in terms of being very proactive and supportive around suicide prevention. “Very sadly, the ONS recently released suicide data, and it is at
the highest it has ever been. T e data is not going down, the number of people dying by suicide is not getting any less, it is getting higher and higher every year. Something needs to be done, and we need to have brave conversations. Businesses, employers and communities need to get on board and work together in terms of what can we do. “Suicide is a very diffi cult subject to highlight because a lot
of people would shy away from having that conversation. So, we want to do that work in terms of breaking down the stigma and having conversations. T is year’s World Suicide Prevention Day message was ‘changing the narrative on suicide’, so we have to talk about suicide - if we are going to make a diff erence then diffi cult conversations need to be had.” Tour dates are still to be confi rmed but at present September 19
has been marked for Northamptonshire. Kelly’s Heroes is looking to set up a working group that will bring together a diverse group of voices from across the public sector, private sector, charities and all those with lived experience, to help plan this impactful day. Opportunities to get involved, include: ■ Event sponsorship: Businesses can play a vital role in supporting and enhancing the day’s events.
■ Baton holders: Individuals and organisations will have the chance to be a part of the Baton of Hope Walk across Northamptonshire.
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Rachael Hewitt, left, and Amy Hewitt-Riley from Kelly’s Heroes
■ Celebration Event: A signifi cant event will be organised to mark the occasion and amplify the message of hope.
T e charity is looking to hold a kick off meeting later this month,
and highlighted how it’s crucial to have as many perspectives as possible involved, urging businesses, community groups and people in the region to express their interest. Sherry added: “Our charity, given its foundation, that it has come
from a devastating place of a personal bereavement, it seems rather poignant we have been chosen to lead the tour in Northamptonshire. We supported the inaugural tour in 2023 by participating in Milton Keynes as baton holders, so we know that the essence aligns perfectly with everything we do on a day-to-day basis through our services and support. “T e focus of the day will be on promoting hope and recovery,
with the key objective of reducing suicides. We believe that by coming together, we can make a profound diff erence in our community. Let’s work together to make Northamptonshire a beacon of hope!”
To register an interest, email
hello@kellysheroes.org.uk or for more information visit
www.kellysheroes.org.uk.
For more information on Baton of Hope visit
www.batonofhopeuk.org
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