Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many children have died while (a) detained under the Mental Health Act 1983 or (b) in the care of a mental health setting as a voluntary patient in (i) NHS and (ii) private settings in each year between 2016 and 2022.

We are unable to provide the information requested due to the low numbers involved in each year which could lead to the identification of individuals. However, information notified to the Department by NHS England shows that there were 21 deaths of children and young people in inpatient Tier 4 children and adolescent mental health service settings in National Health Service organisations between 2015/16 and 2021/22 and 7 in independent healthcare organisations. This information does not record whether those individuals were detained under the Mental Health Act 1983 or in the care of a mental health setting as a voluntary patient.

As soon as the Department is informed by NHS England of any such death, we immediately notify the Care Quality Commission, which reviews the information and determines its regulatory response. We also notify the National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Safety in Mental Health, which records all cases of inpatient deaths amongst adults and children and young people and routinely analyses them to establish the position nationally and make recommendations on what needs to be done to prevent further deaths.