Be a baton bearer for hope

The event will:

• help raise awareness of suicide prevention support
• call out suicide stigma
• celebrate absent loved ones and those who have been able to find hope and stay with us

Now Kent County Council (KCC) and Medway Council are supporting organisers’ shout out for baton bearers to carry the Olympic Torch-style silverware when it visits the county on Monday, 22 September.

Overall, the tour will visit 20 locations around the country, starting in Blackpool on 1 September and ending in Wrexham on 4 October 2025. Details of the route through Kent and Medway will be shared as soon as finalised.

To apply to be a baton bearer, you will have lost someone to suicide, or you are a survivor.

Fill out this online form and select ‘Kent’ from the dropdown menu in the ‘location’ section: Become a Baton bearer - Baton of Hope.

The closing date for applications is Friday, 31 January 2025. 

It will be the baton’s second visit to Kent. The world’s only known physical symbol of mental health made a guest appearance at the Hope Exhibition at Margate’s Turner Contemporary in July 2023 following its first UK tour, which ended at 10 Downing Street.

Baton of Hope was set up by dads Mike McCarthy and Steve Phillip who lost sons to suicide.

The charity said the Kent and Medway Suicide Prevention Team’s successful bid for Kent and Medway to host a day of the 2025 tour “was fantastic”; “it really highlights our mission to stand up to suicide.”

Funded by NHS Kent and Medway and run by Kent County Council (KCC) and Medway Council, the team leads on local suicide prevention strategy.

KCC Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health, Dan Watkins, said: “We’re very grateful to organisers for putting Kent on the route of the 2025 Baton of Hope tour.

“Suicide is still a taboo subject but the campaign shines a light on the issue. It makes it ‘everybody’s business’ and raises awareness of the mental health support available.

“The 22 September will also be a precious day for Kent’s family, friends and communities affected by suicide. It’s a chance to celebrate lost loved ones as well as those who have been able to choose life and stay.”

Cllr Teresa Murray, Deputy Leader and Portfolio Holder for Public Health at Medway Council, said: “It’s so important we remind people who are suffering that they are not alone, that help is out there and that they are loved and wanted by others.

“The Baton of Hope is a powerful reminder of the help available and that you can find when you need it, just by reaching out. It’s also a wonderful way for us to remember the lives of those we have lost, and for families affected by suicide to remember that they too are not alone.

“It will be a privilege to welcome the Baton of Hope to Medway and also recognise all of those who work with commitment to prevent the tragedy of suicide.”