THE IRISH SUICIDE prevention charity Console is to expand its services to London following a request by the British authorities, it has been announced.

The charity, which offers counselling services and a 24-hour helpline support to people in crisis, says that it was contacted by the Metropolitan Police in London and the Department of Health in the UK after outlining its services at a recent conference.

“It is both a fantastic honour to be asked to establish a UK operation, and an opportunity to spread and develop our professional postvention counselling services which already work so well here in Ireland,” the charity’s CEO and founder Paul Kelly said.

He said that Console was at an advanced stage in securing a premises and says that it hopes to have its London office open and running by the end of the year.

The charity already has full-time centres in Dublin including Tallaght and Clondalkin, Cork, Wexford, Limerick, and Galway as well as offering services into Mayo and Kildare.

Counselling is available for any individual, couples, families or children who have been affected by suicide.

A report last week found that unemployment in the UK has been linked to 1,000 additional deaths by suicide between 2008 and 2010.