HSE Connecting for Life and Donegal Youth Services launch new BRAVE Programme

BRAVE (Building Resilience, Awareness, Voice and Empathy), which is a suicide alertness programme for young people has been co‑designed with young people from the outset. Young people have guided the content, tone and delivery, making BRAVE a programme created with young people, not simply for them.

The new suicide awareness programme for young people aged 16-18 will be launched at the An Grianán Theatre, Letterkenny at 10am on the 10th of September, which coincides with World Suicide Prevention Day and Green Ribbon month.

The soft launch marks an important milestone in Donegal’s collaborative approach to suicide prevention, bringing together young people, youth services, mental health organisations, academic institutions and community partners. BRAVE will initially focus on young people aged 16–18 in out‑of‑school community settings, with pilot delivery taking place through participating groups as part of the Our Generation project.

Funded by HSE Connecting for Life Donegal, BRAVE fills a national gap in safe, trauma‑informed, compassionate and relational suicide alertness training for older adolescents. This gap was identified directly by services and partners sitting around the Connecting for Life Donegal Implementation Group table, who highlighted the need for developmentally‑appropriate support that empowers young people as natural gatekeepers for one another.

Developed by Donegal Youth Service, and shaped with oversight from HSE CFL Donegal, HSE Scan U Service, Ulster University, Action Mental Health, Atlantic Technological University (ATU), the programme provides a safe and supportive space where 16–18‑year‑olds can build confidence, competence and compassion in recognising distress, having safer conversations about suicide, and knowing how and where to seek help.

Pilot delivery will take place through Our Generation, supported by PEACEPLUS and managed by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB), allowing the programme to be tested, refined and strengthened through direct feedback from young people.

Ciara Wray, Resource Officer for Suicide Prevention, HSE National Office of Suicide Prevention(NOSP) stated, “BRAVE reflects the strength of community collaboration in Donegal and the shared commitment of our partners to support young people’s mental health. As funders, HSE Connecting for Life Donegal recognised a clear national gap in compassionate, trauma‑informed suicide alertness training for young people, a need identified by the services who sit around our local implementation group table. Young people are often the first to notice when a friend is struggling. They are natural gatekeepers for one another, and they deserve support that is safe, relational, and grounded in compassion. BRAVE offers a trauma‑informed space where young people can build the confidence and competence to respond when someone they care about may need help and to recognise they don’t have to do this alone.  This launch is an exciting opportunity to bridge that gap, strengthen early intervention, and equip young people with the skills to have safer conversations about suicide, recognise distress, and know how and where to seek support. Their voices have shaped BRAVE from the beginning, and their leadership will shape its impact.”

Frankie McGreevy, Youth Work Manager at Donegal Youth Service said, “BRAVE is a programme designed with young people, not simply for young people. Their voices and experiences have shaped the content and approach from the outset. We want young people to feel more confident having conversations about suicide, to recognise when they or their friends may need support, and to know that asking for help is a strength.”

Colette Ramsey, Research Associate, Ulster University added, “We are delighted to support the pilot delivery of Brave. Young people deserve to have their voices heard when programmes affecting their wellbeing are developed, and this initiative puts meaningful youth participation at its centre.”

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