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Peterborough City Hospital has been chosen by a national charity, which supports anyone experiencing mental health issues, to help spread its message of support and hope.

Legend on the Bench is spearheading a nationwide suicide prevention campaign through installing specially designed wooden benches in prominent community locations around the country.

It is now bringing its ‘Someone is always listening’ motto to Peterborough City Hospital, with the unveiling of five benches of hope in safe spaces around the site which are accessible to staff, patients and visitors.

The benches feature an LED light and QR code that can be scanned with a smartphone to access immediate support.

The QR code will direct users to a comprehensive reference list of professional support groups, complete with contact numbers, website links, and email addresses.

The Legend on the Bench charity is the brainchild of former Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea midfielder Micky Hazard and his sister Michelle, whose son Jay sadly died by suicide in 2019 due to mental health issues. 

The first bench was unveiled in Sawbridgeworth in 2024, and since then, more than 30 other benches have been donated by the charity to communities around Great Britain. 

Micky said: “Our goal is to ensure that help is just a scan away, fostering a community of support and understanding for those facing mental health struggles.”

Earlier this year, Legend on the Bench approached North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust, offering to donate a bench to Peterborough City Hospital.

But thanks to a joint donation by the North West Anglia Hospitals’ Charity and Trust corporate supporters, Progress Health – and fundraising by the Peterborough Spurs Branch - four additional benches have also been purchased and installed. 

North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust Chief Executive Officer Hannah Coffey and Trust Chair Professor Steve Barnett joined Legend on the Bench representatives, alongside colleagues from the Hospitals’ Charity and Progress Health for an official unveiling.

Hannah Coffey said: “Legend on the Bench is a remarkable charity which in a short space of time has established itself among so many communities, offering a beacon of hope to those who need in-the-moment support.

“We are thankful to Micky, his family and the whole team for so generously donating one of their beautiful benches to us, and of course to our own Hospitals’ Charity and the team at Progress Health for helping to further widen the important message that no-one should feel along in their mental health struggles.”

The benches are located in the hospital’s staff reflection garden and woodland walk area, and outside the main entrance, the Emergency Department and the nearby Cavell Centre. It is the charity’s first installation at an NHS hospital.

Micky added: “ Mental health problems affect around one in four people in any given year, and can often lead to suicide, the causes of suicide are often very complex.

​“Mental health challenges can change the lives of people forever, whether that be for the individual, their family or people around them. Legend on the Bench is more than a memorial, it’s a promise-that no one has to face their darkest moments alone. 

“It has been a pleasure to work with North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust, to donate a bench and install a further four, providing a safe space for those who may find themselves in need of reach out for help, which IS there for them.”

For more information about the charity, visit the Legend on the Bench website Legend on the Bench charity | suicide prevention