Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many NHS patients present as a suicide risk; and what steps they are taking in response.

The information requested is not collected centrally. There is no national standardised assessment of suicide risk against which to measure the number of people nationally who present as a suicide risk.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommends against using risk assessment tools to predict future suicide or repetition of self-harm, although such tools may be considered to help structure risk assessments. National Health Service organisations use a range of tools to assist clinicians in assessing a patient’s individual risk. However, these should be used to support the assessment process and should not replace clinical judgement.

The National Suicide Prevention Strategy identifies groups known to be at higher risk of suicide than the general population, including those in the care of mental health services. We continue to work with the National Suicide Prevention Advisory Group to monitor and understand suicide risk in different groups. We are investing an additional £57 million by 2023/24 to support local suicide prevention plans and the development of suicide bereavement services. The Mental Health Safety Improvement Programme also aims to reduce the number of suicides that occur across inpatient mental health and learning disability services.

NHS England and NHS Improvement is establishing 24 hours a day, seven days a week liaison mental health teams in every acute hospital to ensure that those presenting at hospital with mental health needs receive the appropriate care and treatment. By 2023/24, 70% of liaison services are expected to have met the ‘core 24’ service standard, working towards 100% coverage. NHS England and NHS Improvement will be supporting mental health trusts to refresh their Suicide Safety Plans to include both inpatient and community settings in 2021/22.