Suicide deaths in Tendring district rise by 66% - ONS

New data published by the Office for National Statistics shows 20 deaths from suicide were recorded in the district in 2022, the most recent year for which full figures are available.

This was up from 12 in 2021, with nine registered in 2020.

Over the last three years of available data, the suicide rate in Tendring stood at 11.3 deaths per 100,000 people.

This was a decrease on 2017-19 – the three-year period leading up to the start of the coronavirus pandemic – when it was 18.7.

Activists - Julie Bentley (centre), chief executive of Samaritans, joins campaigners outside the Houses of Parliament calling on the government to renew local funding for suicide prevention (Image: PA)

RELATED: Suicide rates in Tendring and Colchester spark calls for more work

The figures record deaths based on the year they were registered, but it can take months or even years for a suicide to be registered at an inquest.

The government published a five-year suicide prevention strategy in September, but mental health charities have warned preventable deaths will persist without significant investment.

Julie Bentley, chief executive of Samaritans, warned the strategy "will only take us so far without investment at both a national and local level".

The Department for Health and Social Care said its new strategy includes more than 100 measures, with a focus on prevention and earlier intervention.

If you're struggling, you can call Samaritans for free day or night, 365 days a year, on 116 123, email them at jo@samaritans.org, or visit samaritans.org to find your nearest branch.

Samaritans' Colchester branch, which is run entirely by volunteers, is in Walsingham Road, off Southway near the city centre, and is open seven days a week.