Bermuda’s “upsurge in violence”, along with simple ways of making the island better, are the topic of a free gathering this week organised by a grassroots community group.

Family Forum, an offshoot of the charity Family Centre, said speakers on Thursday will include Dorian Tucker, Anthony Bascome and Ernest Peets Jr.

Mr Tucker is a former corrections officer and trained workshop leader who speaks on the problems young men in Bermuda face, while Mr Bascome is an educational therapist with the Success Academy programme.

Dr Peets, a therapist and counsellor, is one of the founders of Masc, which offers counselling services for men.

The three are among speakers set for the forum from 6pm to 9pm at the Whitney Institute in Smith’s.

Thania Redman, the chairwoman of Family Forum, said the group had its roots in a call made in 2009 by Martha Dismont, the late founder of Family Centre, for the strengthening of relationships and family connections as an antidote to the island’s social struggles.

Ms Redman said: “She spoke on the gang violence that the community was experiencing — and here we find ourselves, 16 years later, with our community going through similar circumstances.”

Ms Redman, a relationship development director at Family Centre, said episodes such as fatal shootings “take our breath away and make us try to figure out how we can prevent it, what roles we can play as individuals”.

She added: “That’s been the ethos of Family Forum since its inception. Our mission is to provide a safe space for any member of the community to come. We give our attention to helping to problem solve and provide support.

“It’s an open forum with the understanding that, as it’s a safe space, it’s a place of privacy and respect and a place of no judgment.

“We want our members to know that they’re not alone.”

Family Forum said that the group had heard Mr Tucker and Mr Bascome at a talk in May, which left members wanting to “know more about why the upsurge in violence was happening” — and keen to discover what could be done next.

The group added: “Attendees left the room inspired and committed to helping to share the wisdom of our panellists.

“Family Forum, from that evening to today, have been working tirelessly to get these gentlemen to share their knowledge and experience with the greater community.

“As a grassroots organisation, born out of the tragedy of gun violence and seeing the escalation of our young people continuing to get caught up, we felt compelled to build upon the work we started 16 years ago.

“We invite the community to come out and let us share knowledge and experiences, and problem solve. We can make a difference and have a positive impact.

“Knowledge is power and small changes lead to big effects.”

Ms Redman said the meeting on Thursday will offer a chance to join “a room filled with people who have experienced real life and can speak from that reality”.

“The main purpose is for attendees to leave that room at Whitney Institute with a nugget of what they can start that night within their own home, to be the change that they want to see,” she added.

“We just want to provide viable, practical advice and tools. It might be something as simple as committing yourself to asking your child how their day went.”

• Residents are welcome to turn up on the night or e-mail familyforum.bda@gmail.com for more information