No Secrets was co-founded by mother and daughter Maureen and Kerri back in October 2007. At the time, Kerri was self-harming on a daily basis and the family were struggling. Professionals didn’t seem to be able to tell them anything about self-injury or offer any helpful resources. And so, after months of trudging through day by day, they decided to bring the support to themselves. They set up their first peer support group in St Helens, Merseyside, and began meeting others in the same boat.

Kerri found it helpful to speak to others who understood what it was like to live with self-injury, and no longer felt so alone with the problem. Maureen also gained comfort from other carers in similar situations.

In 2009, the members decided to start training professionals in self-injury. Who better to tell the professionals about it than those who live with it on a daily basis? No Secrets has now trained over 1000 local professionals working with people who may self-injure. In 2011, Kerri and Maureen set up their second group in Wigan. Over the next twelve months, three more groups followed in Halton, Warrington and Knowsley.

No Secrets was registered as a charity in September 2013. The most
important thing is to let people out there know that they are not alone. So many others out there self-harm, and it’s possible to overcome it. No Secrets would like to thank all the individuals who have contributed to this book. Without your involvement, this book wouldn’t have been possible. We would also like to thank our ambassadors, singer/songwriter Laura White and Chief Executive of 5 Boroughs Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, Simon Barber, for their ongoing support and commitment. We would also like to thank Dr Sam Warner for taking time to write a Foreword for us. Last but not least, thank you to Dr Andrew Holding, Dr Emma Hickey and Mr Gary Lamph for reviewing the contents of the book prior to publication.