Thirteen years ago, I was a sales director in a thriving publishing house in Surrey, working with the aviation and duty-free industry. On May 5th 2012, I lost my middle daughter Lucy to suicide at the tender age of just 22 years of age.

Her death shifted the ground that I walked on and my life as I knew it changed forever. In 2015, I left the corporate world to start the charity in her name, The Lucy Rayner Foundation. Through the grief, I educated myself about mental health and how issues can be masked in many ways, hidden in plain sight by the person who is struggling.

Often, it also isn’t recognised by GPs, family members and friends but the signs are there if you know what you are looking for. I had missed the signs and I didn’t want anyone else to feel the traumatic pain and despair that was felt by my entire family. So my daughter Emma and I began working in our homes. We wanted to start up a counselling service to support young people who are struggling and just offer space for them to talk.

I emailed and called counsellors and asked if they would support our efforts and work for free! We had a huge response, so the charity began in earnest, growing organically and steadily through the pandemic where we adapted and took our services online. I learnt everything there was to know about fundraising and spent hours filling in grants, just enough to allow us to grow bit by bit.

In 2021, I became the CEO of the Foundation, as the growth meant we had to change our structure to a CIO, taking it from a small charity to a medium-sized charity with a small team of seven staff members. The challenge for me was the transition. I had to learn very quickly to adapt and lead from the front, changing how we operated. I had to put new systems and policies in place and understand the level of governance needed to remain transparent and open.

All the while, I was overseeing a crucial, effective, high level of service to families. It was really tough!

Today, we have 50 counsellors, support groups for men, women, families, the Surrey Suicide Bereavement Service and a progressive Schools Programme in the hope that we can turn the tide at primary school age and support children within the schools – PREVENTION is key for the future generations.

I dreamt of a day when I would open a Wellbeing Centre that bridges the gap between NHS Services and GP waiting lists, offering tools and solutions to young people before they reach crisis. That day is becoming a reality for me and I look forward to opening those doors within the next two years.

www.thelucyraynerfoundation.com