You asked
Please provide the following information:
- The number of deaths which resulted in suicide between January 2020 and February 2021.
- The number attempted suicides between January 2020 and February 2021.
The number of deaths which resulted in suicide between January 2018 and February 2019.
- The number attempted suicides between January 2018 and February 2019.
We said
Thank you for your enquiry.
Suicide data 2018 to 2019:
In order to provide the number of deaths involving suicide specifically from January 2018 to February 2019, we would be required to create bespoke analysis. Under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, Public Authorities are not obligated to create information in order to respond to requests. We therefore consider this to be information not held.
However, annual suicide statistics are available via the following link: Suicides in the UK. Our statistics are based on the date of registration. Therefore, our annual release is based on 2019 death registrations. 2018 registrations are also available in the "previous versions link".
Please note, the majority of suicides require an inquest, where a coroner investigates the death. The amount of time it takes to hold an inquest causes a lag between the date of death and the date of death registration, referred to as a registration delay. Registration delays for deaths caused by suicide tend to be 5 to 6 months on average.
Suicide data 2020 to 2021:
We produce provisional suicide data for England on a quarterly basis. This publication provides deaths that have been registered from January to June of 2020. This is for deaths registered in 2020, and due to the registration delay described above, many of these deaths will have occurred in 2019.
Our Suicides in the UK publication will be updated with 2020 data in September 2021.
As such, the information you have requested is considered exempt under Section 22(1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, whereby information is exempt from release if there is a view to publish the information in the future. Furthermore, as a central government department and producer of official statistics, we need to have the freedom to be able to determine our own publication timetables. This is to allow us to deal with the necessary preparation, administration and context of publications. It would be unreasonable to consider disclosure when to do so would undermine our functions.
This exemption is subject to a public interest test. We recognise the desirability of information being freely available and this is considered by ONS when publication schedules are set in accordance with the Code of Practice for Statistics. The need for timely data must be balanced against the practicalities of applying statistical skill and judgement to produce the high quality, assured data needed to inform decision-making. If this balance is incorrectly applied, then we run the risk of decisions being based on inaccurate data which is arguably not in the public interest. This will have an impact on public trust in official statistics in a time when accuracy of official statistics is more important to the public than ever before.
Attempted suicides
Unfortunately, we do not collect data on attempted suicides. Our suicide data is derived from death registration data following coroner's inquests. We would only be notified of a death. NHS Digital may be able to provide you with this information. They can be contacted via email at enquiries@nhsdigital.nhs.uk.
If you would like to discuss your request further, please contact Health.Data@ons.gov.uk.