Young suicide: 65% of parents don't know where to turn to support their child

Suicide prevention charity C.A.L.M. releases new data suggesting significant work needs to be done to tackle young suicide

Evelyn was just 15 when she took her own life, one of 6929 young people who've died by suicide in the last decade
Author: Mick CoylePublished 28th Jan 2025
Last updated 28th Jan 2025

Half of adults in the UK (52%) believe the UK Government should be doing more to prevent suicide among young people.

New YouGov research, commissioned by suicide prevention charity Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM), found 59% of UK adults feel there is insufficient public services funding for mental health and suicide prevention.

65% said they wouldn’t feel confident about where to turn for practical support should they need to support a young person with suicidal thoughts

Suicide and young people - a leading cause of death

The following video contains reference to suicide, that some viewers might find upsetting.

LISTEN: We share Evelyn's story on this week's Mental Health Monday Podcast with Mick Coyle

Suicide is the leading cause of death for young people aged 15-34 and in the last decade, suicide has claimed the lives of 6,929 15-24 year olds

Two-thirds of those surveyed (62%) claim that young people aged 15-24 face more challenges than their parents’ generation, with separate polling from 2024 finding that as many as two-fifths (39%) of those aged 18-34 having experienced a mental health crisis or suicidal thoughts over the past five years alone.

Poignant video captures the need to stop young suicide

Evelyn, who featured in the video took her own life before her 16th birthday.

Jack and Jenni Swift, Evelyn’s parents who live in Grantham, said: "Our daughter Evelyn took her own life when she was just 15 years old.

"We miss her so much.

"We hope this film encourages parents and carers, teachers, coaches, health professionals - anyone really - to understand the sheer scale of this issue and how anyone can be affected.

"And we hope it encourages people to arm themselves with the skills and tools they need to properly support a young person. Parents and carers especially need skills and knowledge to support their young people.

"It’s really important people don’t shy away from using the word suicide. It can be really scary - but we need to use the word suicide confidently to enable more open conversations.”

Is the government doing enough?

The research also found the Government to be particularly ineffective at tackling the impact of social media (63%), insufficient public services funding (59%) and failure to provide suicide prevention resources (44%).

Adults in the UK also believe that students are at risk as they are not getting effective mental health support they need provided to them in schools (55%) and the role of academic pressures young people face are ineffectively addressed and ignored (50%).

In response, CALM has created a "C.A.R.E. Kit", a free online resource developed to equip people with practical suicide prevention skills, based on the C.A.R.E acronym:

  • Check in
  • Ask how they are
  • Remain close
  • Expert help

Young lives 'needlessly lost to suicide'

Simon Gunning, CEO of CALM, said: “We cannot stand idly by while young lives continue to be needlessly lost.

"Over the past decade, 6,929 young adults have taken their own lives in the UK, and these statistics serve as a deafening call to action against government inaction, which has consistently failed young people in the UK.

"Suicide prevention can't wait. Young people are facing immense social challenges and economic pressures, which is why we’ve taken it upon ourselves to fill that gap now with the CALM C.A.R.E Kit, which we’re urging absolutely everyone to save, share and bookmark."

The CALM C.A.R.E. Kit is available for free at thecalmzone.net.

Government statement on youth suicide

A DHSC spokesperson said:

“It’s this government’s mission to reduce the lives lost to suicide, giving mental health the attention and focus it deserves. As part of this, we will address the causes of suicides and take action to improve children and young people’s mental health.

“As we shift from sickness to prevention, we will recruit an extra 8,500 adult and child mental health staff, modernise the Mental Health Act, and provide access to mental health support in every school.”

Links to help

Hear more about CALM's campaign on this week's Mental Health Monday Podcast

If you, or someone you know is suffering with their mental health, or experiencing suicidal thoughts, you can speak to your GP. If someone's life is in danger - call 999 immediately.

You can also find help and advice from these services:

Hub of Hope - hubofhope.co.uk

Samaritans – Call 116123 - samaritans.org

Mind - 0300 123 3393 - mind.org.uk

Between 5pm and midnight CALM run a suicide prevention helpline on 0800 58 58 58. More details here: thecalmzone.net/suicide-prevention-helpline

You can also find details of CALM's C.A.R.E. kit here: care.thecalmzone.net

Hear all the latest news from across the UK on the hour, every hour, on Greatest Hits Radio on DAB, smartspeaker, at greatesthitsradio.co.uk, and on the Rayo app.

Rayo PremiumRayo Premium

Ken Bruce: Richard Allinson sits in

Greatest Hits Radio