Suicide rates among young people aged 15 to 19 in England rose by 35% from 2020 to 2021 according to new data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS, 2022).
The data has been analysed by mental health charity YoungMinds. In 2020, 147 young people aged 15 to 19 in England took their own lives. This rose to 198 in 2021. This is the highest number in more than 30 years.
It comes as the latest NHS figures show that 2022 is on course to see the highest ever number of referrals to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS).
Figures to date show the number of under-18s needing NHS treatment for mental health problems is 23% higher than at the same point last year. More than 241,000 young people were referred to the NHS in the first three months of 2022, which was already half of the total figure referred in the whole of last year.
In May, SecEd reported that there has been a 54% increase in the number of under-18s undergoing mental health treatment or waiting to start care in the last two years.
The latest figures show that 395,805 people were “in contact” with children and young people’s mental health services, at the end of June 2022.
And given the extent to which CAMHS are stretched, a large number of these young people are yet to be treated and remain on waiting lists.
Research earlier this month from YoungMinds, involving 1,000 teachers (primary and secondary), reports that pupils’ learning is being negatively impacted by poor mental health support (according to 74% of the responding teachers). Furthermore, 59% said that they were dealing with mental health issues in their school on a daily basis.
YoungMinds chief executive Emma Thomas said: “Young people are struggling to access the support they desperately need, and the dramatic rise in suicides is truly alarming.
“We know that professionals, from the NHS to school classrooms, are doing all they can to support the record numbers of young people struggling with their mental health but without government support, they can only offer a sticking plaster.
“We are calling for more resources for the NHS, so young people, particularly those in crisis, can access help quickly, and dedicated mental health support in every school. We want ring-fenced funding for schools so they can better support the thousands of young people who are struggling right now.”
Ms Thomas has called on prime minister Liz Truss to “re-commit” to the 10-year plan for mental health. A consultation and call for evidence was carried out in April this year by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC, 2022) to help inform this plan. YoungMinds would like for it to include “urgent action” on access to NHS services and dedicated mental health funding for schools.
Commenting on the latest figures, Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said: "School staff are on the front-line when it comes to mental health issues in children and young people, but the funding for accessible and timely professional support has been stripped away by lack of investment into education and health over the last decade.
"We agree that this should be a key area of concern for the new prime minister. Teachers are not mental health specialists and cannot be expected to provide the specialist support that children and young people need. The government must invest further to increase the capacity of specialist services and fund professional mental health support in every school."
- DHSC: Mental health and wellbeing plan: Discussion paper and call for evidence (consultation now closed), April 2022: https://bit.ly/3RKrTuy
- NHS: Mental Health Services Monthly Statistics , Performance June, Provisional July, September 2022: https://bit.ly/3xmM4H3
- ONS: Suicides in England and Wales, September 2022: https://bit.ly/3d8eeyB
- YoungMinds is the UK’s leading charity fighting for young people’s mental health. For more information please visit www.youngminds.org.uk