Bath Building Society has renewed its partnership with Ripple for Business to provide employees with access to crisis support when searching online for content relating to suicide or self-harm.
The society, which employs more than 90 people and has served the Bath community since 1904, is continuing to use Ripple’s BrowserShield technology across its workplace computers as part of its employee wellbeing programme.
BrowserShield is designed to identify potentially harmful online searches and direct users towards helplines and free mental health resources at the point of need.
Unlike conventional internet filtering and monitoring systems, the technology does not simply block access to content. Instead, it introduces a brief interruption and presents information about available support services.
The system also operates anonymously, with Ripple stating that it does not collect personal information or identify individuals who encounter its interventions.
The decision to renew the arrangement forms part of Bath Building Society’s wider approach to employee welfare, which includes support for physical and mental health, professional development and work-life balance.
Richard Ingle, chief executive of Bath Building Society, said: “We have always played an active role in the community, supporting our Members and helping to build a better future together.
“Deploying Ripple technology across our workstations has strengthened our colleague wellbeing programme and provided an additional safety net, helping to ensure that no one faces their darkest moments alone.
“We are proud to continue working with Ri;pple For Business in its vital mission to save lives, and we hope our example will encourage other building societies to do the same.”
ANONYMOUS SUPPORT
Ripple for Business provides its technology to organisations seeking to introduce additional safeguards for employees and customers who may encounter suicide-related or self-harm content online.
The system is intended to operate in the background during normal browsing, intervening only when relevant searches are detected and allowing users to access support without disclosing their identity to their employer.
David Savage, chief technology officer at Ripple for Business, said: “It is often something that no organisation wants to think about; what happens if an employee searches or stumbles across content relating to suicide or self-harm at work?
“With Ripple for Business, we are providing peace of mind that anybody in crisis is immediately directed towards the support they need.
“BrowserShield works without collecting personal data or exposing people at their moments of crisis, it is designed to work invisibly in the background and only step in when it really needs to.
“When organisations like Bath Building Society implement our technology, they are taking an importantstep to addressing suicide and providing tangible action on suicide prevention and we are delighted to continue working with them.”
