The graph also reminds us of the apparent peak in January 2024 - it reversed the next month.

ONS & real time figures are both invaluable. But no data source is perfect.

@OHID report here:

www.gov.uk/government/c...

That is exactly what they are!

Indeed! Greater or lesser, do you think?

None of this changes the need to bring down the suicide rate.

To reduce the >5000 suicides that occur every year in England.

To focus on the economic pressures that many are facing - whether or not the rate is rising.

Suicide is preventable: no suicide rate is acceptable. //

So what should we make of the claim that the suicide rate in 2023 was the highest this century?

The new figures suggest it isn’t true.

Rates have been higher since 2018 but are not strictly comparable with what went before.

There is though an unusual 10% jump in 2018, the year the legal definition of suicide was widened.

Wider definition = higher figures, obviously.

This week’s @ONS figures for suicide occurrences go up to 2023.

And the pattern is different from the rise that made headlines.

From 2018-2023 there is no rise - the trend in these years is flat. The 2023 rate is actually ⬇️, but this will likely correct with late inquests.

But if the inquest system is disrupted - for example, during Covid - discrepancies arise.

Delays & catch-ups can give the impression of suicides falling or rising.