On the fifth anniversary of the loss of Samuel Tune, a bench is being placed in his memory on Millmead Island in Guildford.

The bench is part of the Legend on the Bench charity whose aim is to place suicide prevention benches nationwide, for those who feel hopeless can find hope in the darkness and will reach out for help to one of the listening organisations listed on the bench. As the bench says, 'someone is always listening'.

Samuel was a very vibrant, funny, enthusiastic, larger-than-life character, often acting 'the clown', who mostly always had a smile on his face. He cared passionately and was very protective of the people he loved, especially his younger brother, Jacob. According to his friends, he 'was always there for them, always had time and a listening ear and gave good encouragement and support'. Many would describe him as 'a bit of a Geezer' and indeed, he was to Guildford what Del Boy was to Peckham. Once met, he would never be forgotten!

But beneath all this, Samuel was a very sensitive individual; it wasn't unusual that we would both be in floods of tears watching films; 'Marley and Me' was one such film and I guess it was no surprise that 'Love Actually' was one of his favourite films! He had a strong sense of right and wrong and frequently felt frustrated at the injustice he often experienced, having been badly bullied in primary school and because he was often misunderstood and this hurt him deeply. He felt things very acutely as a result of his neurological comorbidities, which he tried to hide and this meant life was often difficult and challenging for him to navigate.

All Samuel ever wanted was to be loved and accepted, to feel he mattered, that people cared about him and to 'fit in'. Samuel was and still is deeply loved and deeply missed by many - if only he could know, if only he could have known, then maybe I wouldn't be writing this today. ALL donations will contribute directly to Samuel's bench, in the hope that in his memory if only one person's life is saved and family and friends are spared the devastating impact of the loss of a life to suicide, that Samuel's death won't have been in vain.

We will be holding the bench unveiling at 1.30pm on Saturday 1st February, riverside, opposite Millmead Lock, GU2 4BE, kindly facilitated by Micky Hazard and David Howells (ex professional Tottenham Hot Spurs players and ambassadors of the charity) who will join us for a drink in the Brittannia pub afterwards, and later, our usual informal candle lighting ritual at 6pm, meeting from 5pm in the Brittannia Pub, Guildford, GU2 4BE. Any enquiries or questions please message me on 07900 247 105.

All are welcome to both or either, as you are able. I look forward to seeing you and remembering Samuel together. A drink will await you behind the bar to toast our beloved friend, son, grandson, brother, cousin, nephew.

Below are some statistics as published by the Samaritans gathered from the Office for National Statistics for England 2023.

5656 suicides were registered in 2023*. This is 372 more than in 2022.

The overall suicide rate was 11.2 per 100,000**, which is an increase on the previous year.

The male suicide rate was 17.1 per 100,000**, compared to a female suicide rate of 5.6 per 100,000**.

Males aged 45-49 years were found to have the highest suicide rate (25.3 per 100,000).

As suicide rates are rising year on year it feels important to raise awareness that help is available, and this is what these benches aim to do.

If you wish to join this quest to try to reduce the country's mental health and suicide deaths please donate today and help this charity raise awareness.