Creating Hope - Conference 2025

Welcome to our hub for Suicide Prevention Scotland's annual conference, taking place in Glasgow.

Key information

When: Thursday 15 May 2025, 09:30 - 16:30 BST
Registration: Starts at 8:45
Where: Radisson Blu Hotel, 301 Argyle Street, Glasgow, G2 8DL

About the Conference

Suicide Prevention Scotland works across sectors to reduce suicide whilst tackling the inequalities which contribute to it. Over the last two years, we have explored what this means and how we can best do this.

This year’s conference will focus on key areas of inequality connected to suicide risk which were identified through this work.

Tickets for this year's conference are now fully booked. If you wish to join a waiting list please email our team.

What happens at our conference?

Learn about what to expect at our Creating Hope Together conference

Download the agenda

Creating connections in 2025

Our conference brings together people working or volunteering in the public, private and third sectors who have a focus on suicide prevention and/or the inequalities which contribute to suicide.

Also attending are people with lived and living experience of suicide who would like to know more about suicide prevention work across Scotland.

We expect around 300 people to join us on the day.

As well as some brilliant keynote speakers, there will be panel discussions and a range of workshops that delegates will be able to participate in.

We're also set to display a range of posters from different organisations to share their own best practice around the principles of Time Space Compassion.

You'll also have an opportunity to tell us about the conversations you're having to help us prevent suicide, as part of our new campaign.

Creating Hope in 2024

At last year's conference, Minister for Mental Wellbeing Maree Todd and Cllr Paul Kelly, COSLA's Health & Social Care Spokesperson sat down with us for a conversation about Creating Hope Together.

We also spoke to a number of delegates to ask them how they are "Creating Hope" - watch these on our YouTube channel.

Click to watch

Suicide is a difficult topic, and many of us coming together will have lived and living experience. Cruse Scotland listening volunteers will be available throughout the day for anyone feeling overwhelmed and looking for some space away from the main room and workshops.

Making your experience accessible and inclusive

We will put a number of important things in place to make sure everyone can have a positive experience

Accessibility

A range of measures will be in place to support the conference being accessible and inclusive. On the day we will:

Be thoughtful about our words and actions and ask participants and speakers to offer us feedback
Talk about stigma and discrimination and offer ways for you to do the same, on your own terms
Set up rooms so there is space for people's walking aids and wheelchairs and provide time to move around the venue between workshops and parts of the day
Provide hearing loops throughout the events space
iInclude clear descriptions of what to expect and the main content of workshops
Have an open-door policy at all times, so you can join and leave when that works for you
Offer quiet spaces to relax or take time out, away from the main agenda
Have listening volunteers who will be able to spend time with you talking through anything that comes up through the event that you want to talk through or support you to give any feedback about the event

Providing the right support

If there is anything else we can do to help you attend on the day, contact craig.wilson@gov.scot to let us know.

You can request anything that will make your experience better and we will do our best to meet any requests.

For example, we could provide large print and audio versions of materials, British Sign Language interpretation, and captioning. All requests will be kept private.

All requests should be made at least two weeks before the conference.

We may be in touch with you directly to discuss your requests, but we will never ask for any proof or reasoning behind an access request.

Key themes at this year's conference

Here's some of the things we'll be talking together about this year

Poverty

Alcohol and substance use

Children and young people

Stigma and discrimination

Transitions and life changes

Isolation and loneliness

Workshop themes

We've got a brilliant programme of workshops for this year's conference. Here's a summary of them:

The Spider In The Glass - Trauma and the abusive relationship
Understanding & Responding to Children & Young People at risk of suicide - a collaborative approach
Homelessness and suicide prevention; good practice and gaps
Creating Hope with Peer Support in the LGBTQIA+ Community
Understanding the association between suicide and gambling harms
Lonely or Alone? Exploring the experiences of loneliness and social isolation in the UK

How Community Led Action Research can help identify and address health inequalities that contribute to increased risk of suicide.
Working effectively with culturally and linguistically diverse clients: Deaf sign language users
Good Dad/Bad Dad? Exploring the experiences of marginalised dads
Disabled People's Mental Health Matters
An Introduction to Intersectional Stigma and Mental Health
Unheard Voices, Urgent Needs; Understanding and responding to suicidality with people who face severe and multiple disadvantage

Public Health Scotland and NHS Education for Scotland will also join us on the day offering a drop-in learning lab for attendees to hear about the suicide prevention training and learning resources currently available.

What else do you need to know?

More useful information to make your day a happy, successful experience

Refreshments

Refreshments will be provided during the day along with a buffet lunch.

If you have any dietary requirements please let us know in advance if you haven’t already as part of the registration process.

Staff will be able to direct you to suitable refreshments.

Getting here

Rail: The venue is approximately 12 minutes walk from Glasgow Queen Street station. The easiest route is typically Buchanan Street to Argyle Street. If arriving at Glasgow Central station the hotel is approximately six minutes walk.

Bus: From Buchanan Bus Station the hotel is approximately a 15 minutes walk via West Nile Street.

Car: Parking is not available at the hotel however the hotel offer a discounted rate of £15 for up to 24hrs for the NCP Car Park on Oswald Street, G1 4PA. This car park is within Glasgow’s Low Emission Zone. The car park is approximately three minutes walk to the hotel.

To access this rate conference delegates should pay for their ticket and have their parking validated, at the hotel reception within 24hrs of booking. Further information about the car park is available here.

Disabled car parking spaces: There are four disabled parking spaces at the NCP Car Park and an additional two disabled car park spaces on Robertson Street which is to the side of the hotel, and approximately three minute walk to the venue.

Terminology

At Suicide Prevention Scotland we recognise that terminology and labels used to refer to social groups and experiences is ethically and politically complex, can be harmful and is subject to debate and update.

Throughout the conference, we will use the terminology partners themselves or cited publications have used to refer to the communities they are led by or referring to.

We are committed to continually engaging with this critical debate to understand and mitigate harm.

We'll be capturing film and photography at the conference. If you don't want to be featured, just let a member of our team know.