Editor’s note: The following article contains a discussion of suicide.Early Thursday afternoon in Liverpool and, in the shadow of Hill Dickinson Stadium, the future king of England is sitting on the Gary Speed memorial bench.Next to William, Prince of Wales, is his wife Kate but the heir to the throne is actually in deep conversation with the woman to his left. Carol Speed is Gary’s mother and, on the ‘talking bench’ Everton hope encourages people to speak about mental health, they are reflecting on her son’s legacy. The former Leeds, Everton and Newcastle midfielder, and Wales manager, took his own life in 2011.To the Princess’ right sit John Billsborrow, a mental health support worker for Everton in the Community, and Sam, a young man who has been supported by the club’s charity. The wind sweeps in off the river but, on World Suicide Prevention Day, the four listen intently first as Carol tells her son’s story, then as Sam relays his own lived experiences.It is a poignant moment on an important occasion.William, royal patron of the Football Association and an Aston Villa fan, is visiting Merseyside to launch On Your Side, a suicide prevention toolkit for people in sport. With support from the Royal Foundation and organisations including the FA, Premier League, the British Olympic Association’s Team GB and British Cycling, the project seeks to equip people with the tools to speak about suicide, recognise the signs and have those conversations which save lives.The Prince and Princess of Wales were at Hill Dickinson for the launch of the On Your Side suicide prevention toolkit (Andrew Parsons/Kensington Palace)The On Your Side toolkit is framed in sporting language, couched to connect better with those it targets from amateur grassroots right up to elite level. The aim is to reach the broadest audience, given no one is immune from the impact of suicide. After all, sport has an almost unparalleled ability to talk to people, particularly some of those most at risk of taking their own lives.“Six years ago, I stood at Goodison Park to talk about Heads Up,” William said. “That campaign set out to change the conversation around mental health through the power of football. It showed what sport can do when it uses its platform for such a purpose.“Suicide remains one of the greatest challenges facing our society. Many people would have felt the impact of this personally. You will know families whose lives have been changed forever by loss. Today we remember them and we recommit ourselves to doing everything we can to prevent more families from experiencing the pain.“Sport reaches people in ways that few other sectors can. Every week, hundreds of thousands of people walk through the gates of stadiums and arenas, millions will gather in clubhouses, sports halls, gyms and community centres.“They play together, train together, watch together and support one another, building relationships that can last a lifetime. Sport creates belonging, it creates identity, it creates a connection, and those connections really matter.”