Suicide should be treated as a public health crisis, a charity has warned after figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed the highest rate since 1999.
Official figures show there were 6,069 suicides registered in England and Wales in 2023, compared with 5,642 the previous year.
It equates to 11.4 deaths per 100,000 people up from 10.7 deaths per 100,000 in 2022, the ONS said.
Suicide rates are highest among men, increasing from 16.4 deaths per 100,000 people to 17.4 last year, the figures show. But rates among females also increased to 5.7 deaths per 100,000 which is the highest figure since 1994.
The data also highlighted a stark north-south divide with the lowest rates in London at 7.3 deaths per 100,000 compared with the North-West which reported 14.7 per 100,000.
ONS head of data and analysis for social care and health Vahé Nafilyan said: ‘Rates increased across all age groups compared to 2022, especially among those aged 45 to 64 years.
‘Suicide rates either increased or remained unchanged in each of the nine English regions, but the North-West saw the largest rise.
‘Suicide leaves a devastating impact on individuals, families and communities, and we will continue to monitor suicide registrations, to support work to protect vulnerable people at risk.’
Jacqui Morrissey, assistant director of influencing at Samaritans, said the shocking figures were ‘worse than expected’ and highlight that with suicide rates at their highest in over 20 years, this should be treated as a public health crisis.
She said: ‘Based on these figures, over 900 people will have died by suicide in the 55 days since the new government took power but while we immediately heard about plans for more wind turbines, it is suicide prevention that has been left blowing in the wind.
‘The Government needs to get its priorities straight because lives depend on it.
‘In particular, local areas must not be left scrabbling around for the funding they need to save lives, with a deadly north-south divide now opening up as rates in the North West hit twice that of London.
‘These figures are the final wakeup call: suicide is preventable but not without real action.’
A Department for Health and Social Care spokesperson said: ‘Every suicide is a tragedy and these figures show a clearly worrying trend, which this government is committed to reversing.
‘We know that people with mental health issues are not getting the support or care they need. That’s why we will fix our broken health system to ensure that we give mental health the attention and focus it deserves.
‘Alongside acting to improve mental health support, we will work across government to tackle the underlying causes of unequal health outcomes including suicide, across the country.’
A version of this story was first published by our sister title Pulse.
