distrACT (UK)
Free digital self-care support for people who self-harm or feel suicidal
distrACT is a trusted, free self-care support app shared by organisations across health, education, local government, charity, and industry.
It gives people who self-harm or feel suicidal clear, evidence-informed guidance tailored to their needs - helping them practise safer self-care, find help earlier, and feel less alone.
By bringing calm, reliable information together in one place, the app helps people understand what's happening and find the right support at the right time - while also easing pressure on already stretched services.
The app can be localised to reflect an organisation’s own services, pathways, and signposting to further support - while retaining consistent, trusted core guidance.
Available free on the Apple App Store and Google Play. No account is required to download or use the app.
Why this app exists
You want the best possible care for people who self-harm - but that isn't always easy when demand is high and time is short.
It becomes even harder when individuals feel overwhelmed, distressed, or in crisis, and aren't sure what to do next or where to turn. At those moments, many people are left unsure:
- what their thoughts, feelings, or urges mean
- what they can safely do to cope right now
- when and where to get help
This kind of health confusion - often shaped by mixed messages and unsafe or unmoderated online content - can leave people feeling panicky, isolated, and unsure what to do next.
For services, the impact is familiar: missed chances to support people earlier, avoidable crises, and growing pressure on already stretched teams.
A calm, practical way to support people earlier
With the distrACT app, you gain a simple, reliable way to reach people who aren’t always reached by traditional services.
The app adds a simple mobile layer to how you already share trusted information - complementing leaflets, websites, and face-to-face support by putting clear, reliable guidance directly into people's hands - when they need it and wherever they are.
In practice, the app helps you:
- support earlier intervention
- reduce escalation and confusion
- complement existing services, not replace them
If you want to go further, you can localise distrACT to improve signposting and help people find local support, with your own home page and service directory.
Talk to us about localising this app
Supporting people across the care pathway
People who self-harm or feel suicidal don’t move through services in a straight line. Needs change over time - and support often needs to be available before, during, and after contact with services.
distrACT can be useful at different points along this pathway, including:
- Early concerns or emerging distress - offering clear, trusted information and coping support when people are unsure what they’re feeling or what to do next.
- While waiting for support - providing safe, stigma-free guidance and reassurance during gaps, delays, or transitions between services.
- Alongside ongoing care - supporting people to manage difficult moments between appointments and reinforcing messages shared by professionals.
- Following a crisis or service contact - helping people feel less alone, understand next steps, and access appropriate ongoing support.
In each case, distrACT sits alongside existing services - offering clarity, reassurance, and a safe starting point rather than replacing professional care.
Why mobile apps work
Support works best when it’s available at the moment it’s needed - without barriers.
Apps are simple, practical tools people already rely on every day - familiar, easy to use, and well-suited to delivering support when it's needed.
Apps make it possible to offer calm, discreet self-care guidance in people’s pockets - without replacing existing services or adding pressure to teams.
Once downloaded, an app:
- stays with people
- can be accessed privately, anytime and anywhere
- works offline - which can be crucial in a crisis or in rural areas
It gives people one clear, trusted place to turn when something doesn’t feel right - in a place where they already feel at home.
Who distrACT is for - and who it isn't
You can think of the app as a pocket guide with reliable information, designed for:
- People who self-harm and need clear, trusted self-care support and guidance
- Supporters and professionals who want a safe, reliable resource to share
- Organisations looking to reduce health confusion, support people earlier, and improve outcomes - at scale
The app is not a medical device and is not designed to:
- Replace clinical assessment or treatment
- Act as an emergency service
- Store personal data or monitor individuals
Instead, it sits alongside existing services - offering clarity, reassurance, and a safe starting point.
How distrACT works in practice
Inside distrACT, people who self-harm or feel suicidal can find clear, supportive content designed for real-world moments - including times of distress or uncertainty.
This includes support to help people:
- Make sense of what's happening, with clear explanations
- Use practical self-care and coping strategies straight away
- Access calming tools, such as relaxation, grounding, or creative activities
- Find trusted support, through signposting to services, charities, helplines and resources
- Know what to do in a crisis, with clear next steps when urgent help is needed
Everything is written in plain English and designed to be easy to return to - especially when concentration is low, or emotions are high.
Safe, private, and free to use
So you can share distrACT with confidence, the app has been designed with safety and accessibility at its core:
- entirely free for users and organisations
- no contracts, no sign-up, and no set-up
- no personal data collection, tracking, or profiling
- no ads or in-app purchases
- compatible with standard smartphone accessibility features
People can use the app discreetly, in complete privacy - even when offline.
Proven quality and real-world impact
distrACT is already supporting people across the UK and beyond.
- 100,000+ downloads
- Winner, BMA Patient Information Award (wellbeing)
- Listed on the Mind App Library
This is established, trusted support - ready to use at scale.
Trusted and quality-assured
distrACT has been independently assessed and meets recognised quality and safety standards, including:
- PIF TICK certificiation
- ORCHA assessment
- NHS DTAC compliance
Trusted by organisations across health, education, charity, and industry.
Developed with care and credibility
distrACT was developed collaboratively with the people and organisations closest to the issue.
From the outset, the app was created in partnership with:
- people with lived experience of self-harm
- clinicians and mental health professionals
- specialist charities and sector partners
This collaborative approach helped shape both the content and the design, ensuring the app is clinically sound, evidence-informed, and relevant to real-world situations.
This means you can feel confident that the app is aligned with best practice - not just theory.
We continue to develop and improve the app through ongoing collaboration with partners and users.
Development partners include:
What people say about distrACT
People tell us that, in difficult moments, what matters most is feeling safe, understood, and not alone. That’s reflected in the feedback we hear from users, clinicians, and partners.
“It’s discreet, private and you can access it at any time - that’s what people tell us they want.”
Naomi Salisbury, Director, Self-Injury Support“A must if you are concerned about self-harm or feeling suicidal and don’t know what to do next.”
App user“A safe alternative to put in people’s hands.”
Dr Dominique Thompson, Student Mental Health Expert and GP
Understanding the value of distrACT
Free apps like distrACT are a small, predictable investment of time and attention. Used well, they can unlock meaningful value over time for people, services, and systems.
The examples below are illustrative only - designed to help organisations think about potential value in their own context, rather than guarantee specific savings.
distrACT can add value by helping organisations to:
- Reach more people, without needing to buy a digital product. Support large numbers of people without increasing staff workload - available 24/7, offline, and in people’s pockets.
- Support earlier action and clearer decisions. Calm, trusted self-care guidance helps people manage distress earlier, understand what’s happening, and know when to seek appropriate help.
- Reduce duplication and inefficiency. A single, trusted place for support can reduce reliance on printed materials, repeated explanations, and fragmented or unsafe online content.
- Complement existing services. By sitting alongside current care pathways, distrACT can reinforce key messages and help reduce avoidable escalation - without replacing professional care.
- Avoid the cost and risk of building something new. Organisations gain many of the benefits of an app - including reach, accessibility, and continuity - without the time, cost, clinical risk, or ongoing maintenance required to develop and manage one themselves.
Ultimately, the value of distrACT lies in making trusted support easier to find - earlier, and at the moments people need it most.
Designed to support sustainability
distrACT supports sustainability in three important, practical ways:
- For people - helping individuals manage issues earlier, build confidence, and access the right support appropriately
- For budgets - supporting prevention, reducing avoidable escalation, and easing pressure on services
- For the planet - reducing reliance on printed materials, unnecessary appointments, and duplicated resources
It’s a small digital intervention that can make a meaningful difference over time.
Make distrACT locally relevant
If you want to go further, you can localise distrACT to reflect your area, service, or organisation.
Localisation allows you to:
- Increase visibility - with your own branded home page inside the app
- Show all available support - by clearly signposting to local services, pathways, and resources
- Engage people more effectively - with messaging aligned to your priorities and the needs of your community
This helps people find the right support faster, in the place they already trust - without the cost or complexity of building something new.
Simple to share, easy to embed
You can help people discover and use the app in simple, familiar ways, including:
- staff recommendations and everyday signposting
- websites, newsletters, and emails
- posters and QR codes
Available free on the Apple App Store and Google Play.
To make implementation easy, we provide a free guide with practical ideas to support awareness and uptake, available on request.
Opportunities to work in partnership
We work collaboratively with a wide range of organisations to maximise the reach, quality, and impact of our apps.
This can include partnerships focused on:
- Impact and delivery - working with public bodies, charities, and sector organisations to reach priority or underserved groups
- Funding and sustainability - supporting long-term access to free, trusted support through grants, sponsorship, or system-level funding
- Responsible commercial collaboration - working with industry partners where there is a clear public benefit and shared values
All partnerships are guided by our commitment to trust, independence, and public benefit. Learn more about what it means to be an impact partner or commercial partner.
If you’re interested in exploring a partnership around distrACT, we’d be glad to talk.
The difference distrACT makes
When people who self-harm or feel suicidal have access to clear, trusted self-care support, they are more likely to:
- feel less alone and more supported during difficult moments
- manage distress earlier and more safely, using practical coping strategies
- know when and where to seek help, including how to access urgent support when needed
Giving people one trusted place for support can make everything feel lighter - for them, and for the teams supporting them.
Let's talk
If you’d like to explore how distrACT could support your community or organisation, we’d be glad to talk.