CAMPAIGN AGAINST PRO-SUICIDE FORUMS
Bereaved families and survivors are calling for a public inquiry over major state failures in response to a nihilistic pro-suicide forum.
Together with Families and Survivors to Prevent Online Suicide Harms we revealed that three Government departments received concerns a combined total of 65 times from coroners about the risks of further deaths from a suicide forum and a substance it promotes, glorifies and instructs for use as a suicide method.
The substance is believed to have cost at least 164 deaths in the UK, but potentially many more.
Following tireless campaigning the forum has been fined £950,000 and Ofcom will seek a court order to block it in the UK.
This is a victory for campaigners, but after 13 months of investigation more lives have been lost. Read more
We are demanding:
Our report ‘Missed Chances, Lost Lives’ report showed how a substance and suicide forum costs lives and the state missed countless chances to act.
to strengthen regulation of the substance, despite repeated calls
Were given to Government by coroners about a pro-suicide forum and poison it promotes
Have been linked to the substance promoted by the nihilistic forum
Since convening the group of bereaved family members and survivors in 2025, we have worked with MPs, Government Officials, and the media to raise awareness of the campaign and share the stories of the real people impacted by pro-suicide forums.
Families presented the ‘Missed Lives, Lost Opportunities’ report to MPs and Ofcom alongside other organisations at an event in Westminster which coincided with their formal call for a public inquiry in the State’s failings in respect to the forum. Shortly afterwards Ofcom reopened their investigation.
A man was convicted in the UK for assisting suicide by selling poison on an online forum – the first conviction of its kind in the UK.
MRF responded by saying: “Ofcom must now use all the tools at their disposal to disrupt this forum, including fines and criminal sanctions against its owners to attempt to shut it down for good.”
Families wrote to Ofcom CEO, Melanie Dawes to call on Ofcom to investigate several suspected breaches of the Online Safety Act. They also wanted Ofcom to apply to the UK courts to block the site permanently, with the forum having previously used voluntary geo-blocking when facing scrutiny in other jurisdictions only to return when those investigations have closed.
Throughout 2025 and 2026, we have written a series of letters from MRF, the group and MPs, pushing for Ofcom to take action against the forum.
Darren Paffey MP, alongside 27 other MPs wrote a letter to Ofcom calling for urgent action to be taken against the suicide forum.
In January 2026 MRF and the group met with Liz Kendall (Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology) and Minister Narayan (Minister for Online Safety) and received assurances that the department is driving change through Government. The group also met with Melanie Dawes (Ofcom CEO) in March 2026. Further meetings with Ministers from other departments will take place in 2026 to keep pushing for change.
MRF and bereaved families attended an All‑Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Emerging Drugs and Online Behavioural Trends at the House of Commons to examine the growing risks of suicide facilitated through online pathways, and the urgent need to strengthen digital safeguards and early‑intervention responses.
To demonstrate the ease at which UK users are still accessing the forum, MRF provided evidence to Ofcom in February 2026 that there were over 100 active UK users on a pro-suicide between November 2025 and January 2026, as well as a UK-based moderator recruiting users from a popular gaming platform used by children.
Bereaved family members, Mary and Bob bravely shared their story and that of their daughter Grace on Channel 4 to raise awareness of the pro-suicide forum.
Ofcom issued a record £950m fine against the suicide forum, which was welcomed by MRF and the families and survivors although it was pointed out the 13-month investigation has been “interminable”.
Ofcom defended this by stating: “It is vital that we ensure our enforcement action is thorough, and this can take time, as is the case for any enforcement agency.”
Bereaved family members Adele and David spoke out against the National Crime Agency’s (NCA) decision not to extradite Kenneth Law, who pled guilty to 14 counts of aiding suicide in Canada. Despite the 112 deaths he is responsible for in the UK, the victims and their families will sadly not receive the justice they deserve.
“The government and tech companies need to work together to create a safer online world and save lives like Grace’s.”
The watchdog also said it will apply for a court order to block the forum in the UK if its concerns are not addressed.
Hannah Aitken took her own life in 2023 and her family have campaigned ever since to protect young people like her from the harms that led to her death.
We lose one young person to suicide where technology plays a role every week in the UK. It’s our belief that suicide is preventable with the right education in place together with better regulation and policy change.
Live Long and Stay Strong where words written by Molly Russell in the weeks before her death that have become the cornerstone of everything Molly Rose Foundation does today.
We influence policy makers, raise the voice of lived experience and deliver education and support to reduce preventable suicide and address online harm.