'We want football fans to realise they can seek help'

Oxford United has become the first professional football club to sign up for a suicide prevention charity's workplace pledge.

Its new partnership with Baton of Hope will see the club deliver in-house personal suicide prevention training to all of its players and staff.

U's first team player Will Vaulks said the topic was something he was "incredibly passionate" about, having lost two grandparents to suicide.

The pledge comes on the third anniversary of the death of Oxford United legend Joey Beauchamp, who took his own life at home in Kidlington in 2022.

Vaulks, who is an ambassador for Baton of Hope, said: "It's been a long time since I lost my granddads, and now I feel I want to have an impact on making a change - instead of me just coming on and talking about my loss, I want to actually put things in place that prevent suicides."

"We want our fans to listen to these things and realise that they can talk, they can seek help," the 31-year-old told BBC Radio Oxford.

He said men were "notoriously not great" at talking about their mental health, but added: "That's where football brings us all together - the match day talking about the game, you could actually just delve a little bit deeper with your friends."

"You guys and girls in the stands, just have a little bit more of a conversation about each other - maybe stop slagging off my first touch for a minute and check on your mate next to you," Vaulks added.

Founded in 2023 by two fathers who lost their sons to suicide, Baton of Hope was established with the vision of creating a zero-suicide society.

Mike McCarthy, whose son took his own life four years ago, said the charity's workplace pledge was a "kind of kitemark for best practice when it comes to suicide prevention in the workplace".

On Oxford United's commitment to the pledge he said: "People look up to these guys and respect them and they listen to them, and to have role models like that embracing the idea that we should all think about suicide in the workplace and suicide prevention is incredibly important.

"They're doing something practical to try and make a change for the future, and I can't thank them enough for the way that they've embraced this."

The new partnership forms part of the club's suicide prevention and mental health initiative, Can We Talk?, which was launched in October 2024.

Suicide is currently the largest killer of men under the age of 50 in UK.

If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this story you can visit BBC Action Line.

You can follow BBC Oxfordshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.