A SUICIDE prevention charity campaigned on the streets of Barrow non-stop for 24-hours to raise awareness of the work they do.

The Barrow, Furness and South Lakes branch of the Samaritans manned a stall in Dalton Road from 10am yesterday to 10am today as part of their 'SHUSH! and listen' campaign.

A green gazebo was set up next to the 'Spirit of Barrow' statue and passersby looked on as volunteers dressed up in giant ear suits to spread their message of listening.

The 24-hour event, dubbed a 'Samarithon,' saw around a dozen volunteers occupy the stand and reach out to people in the town.

Branch director Sarah Cooper said: "We have had a lot of interest - some interest from people wanting to be volunteers and as always people have been very generous."

Volunteers handed out information packs, recruited new supporters and ran a face-painting stall.

At night, the team took to the streets to pass on the contact details of the Samaritans to passersby and revellers at local pubs and bars.

Facts about the Samaritans

- Samaritans began in 1953 in London, founded by a vicar called Chad Varah.

- The initial idea for Samaritans came from the first funeral Chad conducted early on in his career: a girl aged 14 had started her period, but having no one to talk to believed that she had a sexually transmitted disease and took her own life.

- The first call to the new service was made on November 2 1953 and this date is recognised as Samaritans' official birthday.

- There were 6,581 suicides in the UK and Ireland in 2014.

- In 2014, 6,122 suicides were registered in the UK. This corresponds to a suicide rate of 10.8 per 100,000 people (16.8 per 100,000 for men and 5.2 per 100,000 for women).

- The highest suicide rate in the UK in 2014 was for men aged 45 to 49 at 26.5 per 100,000.

Source: Samaritans

Contact the Samaritans

Anybody can call the Samaritans for free at any time of day on 116 123. The conversation will not appear on the phone bill.

For more coverage, see Monday's Evening Mail.