University of Leeds and Leeds Arts University do not track suicides amid "student mental health crisis"

The majority of the UK’s universities including the University of Leeds and Leeds Arts University do not know how many of their students take their own lives, an investigation by the publishers of the Yorkshire Evening Post can reveal.
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NationalWorld sent Freedom of Information requests to all UK universities asking how many of their students had died by suicide since 2018.

Of the 114 which replied, 67 (59 per cent) said they did not hold this information - including the University of Leeds and Leeds Arts University.

University of Leeds and Leeds Arts University do not track suicides amid "student mental health crisis"University of Leeds and Leeds Arts University do not track suicides amid "student mental health crisis"
University of Leeds and Leeds Arts University do not track suicides amid "student mental health crisis"

Five universities refused to divulge the figures.

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The responses from the remaining 42 universities revealed records of at least 120 students having taken their own lives since 2018.

The revelation comes on the eve of an update to a major national report into the issue of student suicides across England and Wales by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

While some simply keep no records, many pointed out that coroners are under no obligation to tell them if one of their students dies by suicide, our investigation found.

The University of Leeds told us there was "no requirement for the University to be made aware of the cause of death", "nor is there any inherent requirement for the University to be made aware of a coroners’ decisions where relevant".

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However, the findings raise questions about whether universities can know if their support services are adequate, with the National Union of Students warning of a “student mental health crisis”.

The University of Leeds statement continued: "Although we are anecdotally aware of some student deaths where suicide has been presumed as the cause of death, we do not hold any formal records of confirmed cases of student suicides.

"Therefore, we are unable to provide the information requested."

The National Union of Students said it was “deeply concerned” about the issue of suicide in higher education.

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A spokesperson said: “Students are burdened with anxiety, feeling overlooked by those in power, and unsupported in addressing the financial difficulties that compound the student mental health crisis.

“Students have been campaigning for university welfare services to improve for many years now, and although we’ve seen additional funding for institutions as a result of our efforts, there is still progress to be made.”

Leeds Arts University does not track suicides either.

In its FOI response, the Leeds Arts University said it does not hold records of student deaths which have been recorded as suicide by the coroner.

It continued: "Leeds Arts University would only receive this information in cases where we would be involved in an investigation undertaken following a student death, of which we have not been party in any instance.

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"To formally document a student death by suicide in University records, we would need to have received this information.

"I can confirm that in no cases have we done so."

However, Leeds Beckett University and Leeds Trinity University were both able to provide figures relating to suicides.

No suicides have been reported at Leeds Trinity University since 2018, the figures show.

At Leeds Beckett University, nine students have taken their own life since 2018.

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Of these, two of the student deaths from suicide were during the 2021/22 academic year - which the university uses instead of calendar years for recording purposes.

As the University of Leeds and Leeds Arts University do not track suicides among students at their institutions, no figures were available.

Universities UK, which represents the sector, said: “Universities want to learn from each avoidable student death to improve the ways that we work with statutory services to manage risk.”

It said it was working with the suicide prevention charities Papyrus and Samaritans on new guidance for universities on what to do after a student takes their own life, due to be published this summer.

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A spokesperson said it would be interested in discussing whether coroners could notify a university as standard if one of their students died by suicide.

The spokesperson said: “We would definitely be open to exploring this with coroners and public health authorities and how it could work in practice.”

But the Ministry of Justice appeared less keen, saying coroners were “already obliged to issue a Prevention of Future Deaths report if they identify any circumstances that need addressing”.

“This report is sent to anyone involved that could take appropriate action, including universities,” a spokesperson said.

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A previous study by the ONS, covering the period July 2001 to July 2017, painstakingly matched student death records with coroners’ court records to calculate the national suicide rate among university students.

It found that while the suicide rate was lower among university students than among the wider population of the same age, male students were at greater risk than their female classmates.

An updated version of this study is due to be published on Tuesday.

Ged Flynn, chief executive of youth suicide prevention charity Papyrus, said: “Many people inside and outside of education settings will find themselves supporting a loved one who may be struggling with thoughts of suicide.

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“This can be a very difficult situation to face, many people will find this challenging and they need to know professional help and support is available.”

_______________________

Help is available for anyone affected by this issue.

Papyrus offers support and advice to young people up to 35 years.

Contact Papyrus HopelineUK on 0800 068 4141, text 07860 039967 or email [email protected].

You can also call the Samaritans for free on 116 123, email them at [email protected], or visit samaritans.org to find your nearest branch.