Princess of Wales Makes Surprise Appearance at Everton for Mental Health Drive

The Princess of Wales made a surprise appearance alongside her husband the Prince of Wales on Wednesday as he called on the sports sector to help prevent suicides. Prince William and Catherine were at Everton's football ground in Liverpool to launch a project encouraging people to remove the stigma around mental health challenges and to seek help.

"Sport has the ability to reach people who may never walk through the door of a mental healthcare service," Prince William will say at the Hill Dickinson stadium. "People who may never seek support themselves and may be struggling in silence." The On Your Side project aims to give people the confidence to start the "difficult conversations" with friends, relations, teammates or colleagues who might be struggling with their mental health. It is backed by sporting figures including Harry Kane, Dame Kelly Holmes and Alan Shearer.

Royal sources said Catherine wanted to attend to highlight the difference that can be made when people feel able to talk openly about how they are feeling and when someone is there to listen. The project seeks to use the reach of sport to raise awareness about suicide and to show people the help available in a crisis, with the Football Association, Premier League and Team GB providing support.

The event marks Prince William's biggest public appearance in the UK since the return of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex from the US. Earlier this week he attended the funeral of Norway's King Harald in Oslo and accompanied his son Prince George to his first day as a boarder at Eton College.

Suicide levels are disproportionately higher among men than women, and it is the biggest cause of death for men under the age of 50 in the UK. Sport is seen as an effective way of communicating that help is available. "My hope is that every sporting organisation in the country will look at what is being launched today and ask a question: 'What more can we do?' Because the opportunity before us is enormous," Prince William will say.

The royal couple will see a bench at the ground dedicated in memory of Gary Speed, a footballer who once played at the club and who died by suicide in 2011. The bench, unveiled last year, is intended to give people a space to speak openly about their anxieties as part of efforts to tackle mental health challenges and loneliness. Alan Shearer, the former England football star and TV pundit, was a friend of Gary Speed and is backing the call for people to support those they worry about. "You don't have to be an expert. You don't have to have all the answers," said Shearer. "But we can all be better at asking, listening, and helping someone find the right support."

A film has been made featuring England football captain Harry Kane and boxer Carl Frampton, who talk about the importance of stepping in and offering help if people see someone who appears to be facing mental health problems. Prince William helps to narrate the video, which seeks to tackle the stigma around mental health and suicide, with 7,000 lives lost to suicide each year in the UK.

The initiative includes a practical toolkit on a free website for people who are worried or embarrassed about what to say to someone if they have concerns about their well-being. It offers a sports-themed way of approaching the topic, called GOALS, representing G: get ready; O: open the conversation; A: ask the question; L: listen and respond and S: support and signpost.

The project has been created with the British Standards Institution and mental health charities, including Chasing the Stigma, which has an app called Hub of Hope. The app claims to hold the UK's largest mental health directory of places to get help. The charity's founder, Jake Mills, said he had faced his own mental health challenges and saw sport as an effective route for this type of message. He said sport was a "real force for good" in bringing people together and for "looking out for one another".

Mark Bullingham, chief executive of the Football Association, said he wanted to see sports organisations "creating a culture where conversations about well-being are really encouraged. Where people feel comfortable asking for help and also know where to get it". Backing the project on Thursday in Liverpool were the Olympian Dame Kelly, the commentator Gabby Logan and the former England footballer Jill Scott. Prince William has been a longstanding campaigner on mental health and suicide prevention, with his Royal Foundation having last year launched the National Suicide Prevention Network.