When one of your patients finds themselves at a breaking point with their mental health, a GP surgery or emergency department is often the first place they think to turn. Yet for someone in deep distress, a busy, brightly lit clinical room can feel overwhelming. At the same time, primary care and hospital teams are working under immense pressure.
That is where Crisis Safe Space comes in. Designed to offer a quiet, non-clinical alternative during evening hours, it gives adults across Somerset a friendly setting in which they can speak with trained and understanding staff.
What a Peaceful Sanctuary Means to Someone in Distress
As Sally explains in the animation, she has used Crisis Safe Space during some of her most difficult moments, and her experience shows why this kind of community support matters so much:
“Crisis Safe Space has supported me on many occasions over the past couple of years when I have been struggling with thoughts of self-harm or suicide. They have welcomed me in my moments of desperation, providing me with reassurance and compassion and a safe place to just ‘be’.”
For many people, the hardest part of a crisis is feeling like they have to explain themselves or act a certain way. Sally noticed how much it helped simply to have someone listen to her without any expectations:
“There has never been any pressure to talk or explain myself or to do anything, and I have benefited so much from just having someone sitting alongside me in my periods of mental health crisis. Sometimes, I have needed to just express my feelings or to share my intrusive thoughts with someone who could hold them without judgment. Sometimes, I have needed someone to help me plan how to get through the next couple of hours or days.”
A busy waiting room full of noise can increase anxiety. Having access to a soothing alternative can help people feel grounded again:
“Crisis Safe Space has always felt safe and calming, in contrast to the environment of alternative places such as A&E, where there are crowds of people, lots of noise and bright lights. This has really helped me to cope better with my distress and to ground myself more quickly instead of my senses being heightened, which would have caused me to become even more dysregulated.”
Sally appreciates the deep, compassionate listening available:
“The people who have listened to me at Crisis Safe Space have been so caring and validating. They have given me time and space to explore options and supported me to reach a place of safety. It has been so valuable and so appreciated.”
You can watch an animated video of Sally sharing more about her experience with Crisis Safe Space at the top of this page.
Easing Pressure Across Somerset’s Healthcare System
Crisis Safe Space does more than support individuals through a difficult period; it also offers relief to our wider healthcare network in Somerset.
When people have access to community crisis support outside standard hours, it changes how they seek help during a crisis:
- People using Crisis Safe Space shared that without the service available, they would have relied on urgent NHS services on 50% of occasions.
- On 6% of visits, service users said that having access to Crisis Safe Space prevented a suicide attempt.
- Across Open Mental Health, joining up community mental health support contributed to a 35% reduction in acute mental health hospital bed days.
- Together, these local services helped bring about an 18% reduction in inpatient admissions and a 15% drop in mental health emergency department attendances, saving £6.1 million in bed day costs.
If you would like to see how the service operates on the ground and what your patients can expect when they visit, take a look at our introductory video:
Watch How Crisis Safe Space Works
Working Together to Guide Your Patients
Whether you are seeing a patient in a routine appointment or assessing someone who might need occasional evening support, Crisis Safe Space can be a reassuring, safe option to discuss with them.
We have put together a straightforward guide showing how medical staff can book a spot at Crisis Safe Space for a patient.
Read the step-by-step booking guide for healthcare professionals >>