A call to update Brighton and Hove City Council’s suicide prevention strategy is due to go before councillors this week.
Labour councillor Andrei Czolak intends to propose a motion at a meeting of the full council on Thursday (20 July), asking for a report to review and update the outdated strategy.
Councillor Czolak looked into the council’s suicide prevention strategy after attending the Baton of Hope campaign event in Brighton on Wednesday 5 July.
The Baton of Hope was a tour of 12 cities across the country, with a torch being carried by notable personalities, leaders and people with their own inspiring stories of hope.
The aims of the initiative included to “create a society where suicide and suicide prevention are openly and widely discussed, where we inspire hope through action, where people are suitably supported and where everyone plays their part in realising this vision”.
After hearing stories from survivors and those bereaved by suicide, Councillor Czolak checked the current arrangements and found that they had not been reviewed since the 2019-21 strategy was approved.
He said that he had personal experience of the issue, having lost a close friend to suicide when he was 17.
Councillor Czolak said: “At the heart of any suicide prevention is an environment where individuals feel safe and comfortable discussing their struggles and able to seek help without fear of judgment or discrimination.
“This comes from breaking the stigma surrounding mental health and suicide. To demonstrate this administration’s commitment to doing that, I shared my own experiences with depression.
“I am one of the lucky ones because when I needed it, help was there. By working together, this city can ensure that help is always there, for anyone, at any time.”
He said that he was concerned about the increasingly high rate of suicide in Brighton and Hove.
The latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that 39 people took their own life in the city in 2021 – an increase of three from 2020.
National figures released by the ONS for 2021 showed that nearly three quarters of the 5,583 people who took their own lives were men.
Samaritans are available day or night, 365 days a year. The organisation’s free phone number is 116123. Alternatively, email jo@samaritans.org or visit www.samaritans.org to find the nearest branch.
