Safety comes before everything else.

Where danger feels immediate, act quickly. Where help is urgent but not an emergency, NHS 111 can direct you to the right mental health support.

Urgent routes

Use the quickest appropriate support when safety is at risk.

Short instructions are easier to use in a crisis. Choose the route that matches what is happening now.

Call 999 or go to A and E where someone is in immediate danger, has serious injuries, has made a suicide attempt, or cannot stay safe.

Call NHS 111 and select the mental health option when urgent mental health help is needed but there is no immediate emergency.

Ask your GP surgery for an urgent appointment when help is needed quickly but the situation does not need emergency services.

When immediate danger has passed, the support services page gives routes into Talking Therapies, local NHS services, Mysterious Minds and Mind.

Give the service the main facts: what is happening now, whether anybody is injured, whether the person can stay safe, and where you are.

Perfect wording is not required. Direct information helps the person answering understand what needs to happen next.