It’s a scene designed to stop passers-by in their tracks.
Dig a little deeper into what it means and the shock sinks in. Each pair of shoes lined neatly in front of St George’s Hall in Liverpool represents a child who took their own life in Britain in 2017 – 226 in all.
It was organised by suicide prevention charity PAPYRUS to mark Children’s Mental Health Week and as part of their #SaveTheClass campaign on child suicide.
The charity joined local broadcaster Radio City for the 100th episode of its Mental Health Monday show.
“We hope our live show and Lost Childhoods shoes event will shine a spotlight on the issue of young people’s suicide and also the wider issues our young people are facing,” said presenter Mick Coyle.
It comes in the same week as a YouGov poll for the Prince’s Trust found the number of youngsters feeling like life is not worth living doubled in 10 years, from nine per cent to 18 per cent.
