Deaths from COVID-19 by age, suicide, difference in death rate between 2018 and 2020

You asked

I am writing to ask that you provide me with the following information under the Freedom of information Act;

1. In the period of January 2020 to January 2021 what was the total number of burials and cremations registered in the UK?

1. What were the total numbers of burial and cremations in the previous 4 years from January 2015 to December 2019?

1. Has there been a significant increase in deaths during the period of January 2020 to January 2021 in comparison to January 2018 to January 2019, given that we are in the midst of a pandemic? If so can you quantify this?

1. How many of the deaths, between January 2020 and January 2021 were registered as Covid deaths with serious chronic comorbidities listed as a secondary cause?

1. How many children between the ages of 1 and 18 were recorded as Covid deaths?

1. How many deaths registered as Covid have 'suicide' listed as a secondary cause?

1. How many deaths have been registered since the roll out of the UK's vaccination programme and what is the age range of this group?

We said

Thank you for your requests.

Burials and cremations registered in the UK

Unfortunately, we do not hold information about burial or cremation, as this is not supplied during the registration of a death.

Cremation statistics are available online from the cremation society of Great Britain: https://www.cremation.org.uk/statistics

England and Wales mortality data 2018 to 2020:

We publish historic annual mortality totals in our Deaths registered series, please see table 1 for these totals:

• All causes England and Wales 2018 - 541,589
• All causes England and Wales 2019 - 530, 841

The finalised annual data for 2020 will be available in summer 2021 following late registration delays due to coroner's inquests etc.

Provisional 2020 mortality totals in England and Wales can be found in the following publication: https://blog.ons.gov.uk/2021/01/12/counting-deaths-involving-coronavirus-a-year-in-review/.

This publication states that there were 608,002 deaths registered between 1 January and 31 December 2020.

COVID-19 deaths with underlying causes

We have been producing Pre-existing conditions of people whose death was recorded with an underlying cause of COVID-19, deaths registered in 2020. This dataset can be found in section 7 of the Monthly mortality analysis bulletin. This dataset provides a greater insight into the leading underlying causes of death groups for deaths occurring in England and Wales in 2020 and will be updated quarterly.

Please see table 1a for counts of deaths due to COVID-19 in 2020 that involved pre-existing conditions.

COVID-19 deaths by age

We publish deaths involving COVID-19 by age and sex in our weekly deaths dataset. Please see 'Covid-19 – Weekly registrations' table. This publication also include a total death count per week in the 'Weekly Figures' tab. Please see this publication for the answers to questions 5 and 7.

Suicide statistics 2020

In England and Wales, when somebody dies unexpectedly, a coroner investigates the circumstances to establish the cause of death. The investigation, referred to as an 'inquest', can take months, and in some cases years. When an inquest has concluded, the death is officially registered. For suicides that occurred in England and Wales, the Office for National Statistics then assigns each death with an 'underlying cause', based on the information provided by the coroner. Suicides are coded under X60-X84 (intentional self-harm) in line with the World Health Organisation's ICD-10 guidance. COVID-19 would not be listed as a secondary cause on the death certificate as the death would have been a result of causes relating to self-harm.

Our most up-to-date analysis for suicide data are our quarterly provisional figures, accessible via the following link: Quarterly suicide death registrations in England: 2001 to 2019 registrations and Quarter 1 to Quarter 3 2020 (provisional). This provides suicides that have been registered from January to September 2020, along with age and sex breakdowns on table 2.

We have not yet produced a finalised breakdown of suicides for England and Wales 2020.

Finalised annual suicides data for 2020 is scheduled to be published in September 2020.

If you would like to discuss your requests further, please contact health.data@ons.gov.uk.