Ben Ingber today becomes our permanent CEO, taking over from founder Sarah Anderson. Ben has been with The Listening Place since April 2023, when he joined us as Chief Operations Officer. His passion for TLP and the work we do has been clear since he started, and we are thrilled to have him lead TLP into this next chapter. Sarah will continue to play a key role in TLP’s growth as Founder and Trustee.
Ben’s interest in suicide prevention began when he worked at Citizens Advice during the 2008 financial crisis, with many clients presenting with suicidal impulses linked to debt and financial hardship. He eventually trained with Samaritans, offering phone support to people who were feeling suicidal and becoming involved in training new volunteers. When the opportunity came up to join TLP, Ben says that he was immediately drawn to our ethos and to the courage and resilience with which everyone approached the subject of suicide.
Ben said: “There’s a powerful simplicity to TLP’s proposition: free, completely confidential, face-to-face support for those who feel life is no longer worth living, delivered by carefully selected and trained volunteers. Our conviction in the immense value of this single service is one of our greatest strengths as an organisation. We know that TLP saves lives, and it is my intention to continue and build on the extraordinary work of our founder Sarah Anderson as we move into a bold new chapter, with four sites across London and the capacity to support over 10,000 people a year.”
Sarah said: “I’m delighted to be handing over the reins to Ben, someone who proved within just a few months of joining us that he completely understood TLP and its values. He has two decades of diverse experience across the third sector and his ideas and expertise have been invaluable over the past couple of years, particularly as we’ve navigated the purchase of our fourth site. I believe that TLP will absolutely flourish under his leadership and I look forward to seeing all his successes, while continuing to be deeply involved myself in a different capacity.”
