The Listening Place (TLP) provides free, regular, face-to-face support, by appointment, to people who feel life is no longer worth living. The team of over 850 highly trained volunteers offer 50-minute active listening sessions, allowing people to speak frankly about their suicidal thoughts and feelings in a completely confidential setting. Established in 2016, TLP now operates from four London sites, delivering around 150 appointments daily from 9am to 9pm, seven days a week.

TLP is not an advocacy or awareness-raising charity—their focus has always been on concrete action, ensuring those with suicidal thoughts can access compassionate, effective support when they need it most.

The charity operates without waiting lists, contacting every referral within 24 hours and offering a first appointment within 7 days. Regular fortnightly appointments are scheduled thereafter, with the same volunteer each time.

The service is completely confidential. Many people worry that their suicidal feelings could affect their job or family, so they bottle them up. TLP’s strict confidentiality policy ensures they can share their distress without fear of repercussions.

All support is delivered face-to-face. There is no shortage of remote support for those struggling with their mental health, but TLP focuses on the trusting relationships created by face-to-face contact and the therapeutic value of physical presence and non-verbal communication during a difficult conversation.

TLP’s listeners are all volunteers, carefully selected and rigorously trained to offer non-clinical support. Volunteers are chosen for their warmth, compassion and resilience; their role is to help the people who come to TLP for support to explore and put into words their most difficult and distressing feelings. This volunteer-led model offers exceptional cost-effectiveness; it costs the organisation around £250 to support a person with suicidal thoughts for as long as they need.

TLP receives referrals from over 180 partners, including the British Transport Police, other charities and government agencies. Over 70% of referrals come from the NHS (Talking Therapies, A&E departments, GPs etc).

Since opening, TLP has supported over 34,000 people across London (as of April 2026). Of those who engage with support and complete a review, 78% report reduced suicidal feelings. A recent visitor wrote: “Thank you for saving my life so far. I could not have survived without the safety of these sessions, where I feel like I matter. To know another human being is holding a space for me to pour out all my pain, the ugly truth of what I’m going through, without judgement, is the only light in my life. But I’m grateful this one light is holding me together so I can find my way.”