A youth suicide prevention charity which had been operating for more than 30 years announced its closure yesterday with immediate effect following “an extremely difficult period”.
Papyrus Prevention of Young Suicide announced in a social media statement yesterday that it would no longer be operating, with joint administrators Emma Mifsud and Charles Turner having been appointed from Opus Restructuring & Insolvency in order to manage the charity’s affairs and support its winding-down.
In a further statement on Opus’ website, the charity wrote that the administration followed “an extended and extremely difficult period in which the charity’s board of trustees and senior management explored every available option to secure Papyrus’ future.
These options included changes to its operating model, cost reductions, and consideration of whether services could be transferred to other organisations.
However, due to what was described as “rising demand, increased trading costs, and a reduction in reliable funding across the sector”, the board of trustees concluded that the charity was unable to continue operating.
Some of the services may still be transferred to new partners if possible, the statement confirmed.
Almost £1.6m deficit recorded in recent accounts
The charity’s most recent accounts for the financial year ending 31 March 2025 recorded a deficit of £1.59m, which the charity said at the time was “an outcome the trustees are aware of and have acted to ensure continued running of the charity moving forward”.
The charity experienced notable drops in its income from donations and legacies, other trading activities, and investments, while its expenditure on policy, education, and its Hopeline increased by almost £2m.
Meanwhile, staff costs also increased by almost £100,000, although the number of full-time equivalent employees also increased, from 103 in 2024 to 124 in 2025, which Papyrus attributed to the “expansion of the services we provide, including the recruitment of additional staff and the new offices spread across the UK.”
In one of several posts made by Papyrus employees on LinkedIn, Caitlin Lloyd, a community fundraiser at the charity, wrote yesterday that she and all of her colleagues were made redundant “with immediate effect” the day before.
Lloyd added: “There were events I was looking forward to attending, supporters I was committed to stewarding, and fundraising plans that were in progress. It’s incredibly difficult to process having all of that come to such an abrupt end.
“Most of all, I’m heartbroken that the one UK charity dedicated to the prevention of suicide among young people under 35 has closed.”
Civil Society has approached the joint administrators for comment.
