Appendix 1
This appendix provides a summary of activity delivered as part of the Sussex Suicide Prevention Strategy and Action Plan 2024 – 2027. The actions completed between April 2024 – March 2025 are summarised below.
Action Area 1: Working with Sussex wide partners
· Governance of the Sussex Suicide prevention Strategy and action plan is provided through reporting from the Sussex Suicide Prevention steering group to the Sussex Mental Health, Learning Disability and Autism (MHLDA) Board. An update was provided to the MHLDA Board November 2024.
· Strong multi-agency partnership working delivered through place based (Brighton and Hove, East and West Sussex) suicide prevention steering and partnership and children and young people groups and connect with Local Mental Health Oversight Boards.
· Oversight regarding delivery of local suicide prevention framework and action plans are through each Health and Wellbeing Board.
· Presentations of each local suicide prevention framework and action plan have been presented to the Childrens and Adults Safeguarding Boards.
· Sussex Partnership Foundation Trust are developing a suicide prevention action plan as part of their Trust Strategy
· Publication and system wide dissemination of co-produced all-age Public Mental Health Needs Assessment (PMHNA).
· West Sussex Mental Health Oversight Board (All ages) oversight and governance of the PMHNA and system response to the needs assessment .
· Development of joint West Sussex Safeguarding Children’s Partnership and system wide children and young people’s suicide prevention action plan for West Sussex and presentation to Integrated Care System Children and young people’s mental health delivery group.
· Delivery of a series of workshops to develop better ways of working for improving children and young people’s mental health in response to the Public Mental Health Needs Assessment.
· Development of Sussex wide data dashboard that gives a shared understanding of suicide prevention and self-harm across the system
· Review of the RTS function alongside the DARDR guidance.
· Development of RTS workshop and delivery March 2025 to strengthen the RTS function and joint partner working.
Tailored approaches to improve mental health in specific groups
· Development and promotion across the system of the new service for those with gambling addiction. Successful funding application for wider workforce gambling training obtained from NHS England South East.
· Work done with Probation Service to support officers in the early release programme to signpost and raise awareness of sources of support for offenders.
· More than 380 staff in West Sussex working in domestic abuse services in Children’s Services and community sector were trained on suicide prevention and domestic abuse. This training was developed for Sussex and is being rolled out Pan Sussex. The first 80 staff in East Sussex are booked for their training in the next few months.
· In response to the findings of the West Sussex public mental health needs assessment and learning reviews regarding mental health, suicide prevention, homeless, domestic abuse, substance misuse and criminal justice; work started to develop a Multiple Compound Needs Board for West Sussex. MCN Boards already established in East Sussex and Brighton and Hove. East Sussex MCN Needs Assessment due for publication soon.
· Publication of the drug related deaths report November 2024 in West Sussex that includes further evidence regarding suicide prevention and substance misuse.
· Publication of a report on the deaths of people with a homelessness or housing support need in West Sussex - West Sussex JSNA Website
· Support provided via District and Borough councils through the Local Community Networks to those living in temporary accommodation and mental health in West Sussex.
· Neurodevelopmental Disorders All age pathway review conducted by NHS Sussex.
· Development of all-age autism strategies.
· LGBT+ Needs assessment formed part of the West Sussex public mental health needs assessment with areas for focus specific to prioritising LGBTQ+ people.
· Delivery of LGBTQ+ awareness training as part of the Self Harm Learning Network programme and with schools
· Review of evidence of the links between domestic abuse and suicide presented to the Sussex Suicide Prevention Steering Group and establishing a task and finish group to develop the Pan Sussex work programme for this.
Action Area 2: Suicide Response / Postvention
· The Real Time Surveillance System (RTS) is a local system and in partnership with Sussex Police, incidents of suspected suicides in Sussex are notified in near to real time to enable surveillance of trends and for agencies to come together to step up responses where additional risks and impacts are identified. This provides a mechanism of support for people and communities and opportunities for learning from incidents to enhance suicide prevention activity. Regarding step up multi-agency responses to suspected suicides April 2024 – March 2025 there were 9 for adults and children in West Sussex, 4 for children and young people in East Sussex and 2 for children and young people in Brighton . There is a policy for responses for children and young people and there are standard operating procedures in place for responses.
· Maintenance and ongoing development of response standard operating procedure (SOP) policy for suspected suicides all age.
· Staff wellbeing project delivered across Sussex for those working directly on suicide prevention and continued focus on staff wellbeing during all incident responses.
· Delivery of suicide specific bereavement support for those living in Sussex and delivery of the Sussex wide single point of access for bereavement support by the provider. Quarterly and annual reports received and network meetings conducted by the provider with bereavement support providers across Sussex.
· An evidence review for suicide bereavement support was conducted and qualitative data collection via interviews of stakeholders and bereavement support providers was carried out as part of a rapid needs assessment process for developing suicide bereavement support service offer across Sussex.
· New links and joint working with Highways.
· Worked with rail and highways partners in response to incidents near or on railways or bridges included fences and adding signs with where to seek support.
· NHS Sussex and Sussex Partnership Foundation Trust are part of the safer prescribing work that includes the ten steps, reducing drug misuse, safer wards and personalised risk management.
Adults
· Evaluation of mental health and debt project to inform future work on suicide prevention and financial challenges.
· Review conducted and recommendations agreed for support for women including pregnant women and new mothers as part of the public mental health needs assessment.
· Input into the NHS Sussex women’s hubs regarding suicide prevention and domestic abuse.
· Sussex Partnership Foundation Trust delivery of the 10 ways to improve safety programme.
· Development of co-occurring mental health and substance misuse joint care pathway and protocol and workforces training delivered.
Children and young people
· Presentation to the Sussex wide CYP Mental Health Delivery Group on suicide prevention and children and young people.
· Director of Public health report 2022/2023 children and young people’s mental health in a changing world was published August 2024 detailing the work on reducing risks for children and young people regarding suicide and self-harm and the public mental health needs assessment published September 2024 details the risks and areas for focus for suicide prevention and as well as mental health and wellbeing.
· Workshops held December 2024 in West Sussex to improve access functions for early intervention and support for children and young people’s mental health, in response to the public mental health needs assessment.
· Workshop held in December 2024 in East Sussex to develop suicide prevention plan for children and young people.
· Development and expansion of the Multi-agency Mental Health and Education Triage service to support those most at risk in more primary and secondary schools and colleges in West Sussex and Brighton and Hove with plans in East Sussex developing.
· Expansion of the Mental Health Support teams in Schools to more than 60% of schools in Sussex. West Sussex Thriving in Education team support on mental health and wellbeing provided for all education settings including those who are electively home educated. Grants were provided in support of the work of senior Mental health school leads to deliver earlier intervention and support projects in schools.
· Training provided to schools on the use of the toolkit to support responses to unexpected deaths in schools.
· West Sussex policy developed in response to an unexpected death of a care leaver and policy drafted Pan Sussex.
Action Area 3: Training / learning
· Delivery of a successful Multi-agency Pan-Sussex suicide prevention conference October 2024.
· Debriefs are conducted following each multi-agency response group stand up responses and sharing of learning, recommendations and actions for improvement with system partners at the Sussex Suicide Prevention Steering Group and local Children’s and Adults Safeguarding Boards.
· Research was conducted on the accuracy of the Real Time Surveillance data against coroner conclusions of suicide, a report will be published spring 2025.
· Training needs analysis report under development through Pan Sussex working.
· Programme of training has been commissioned to increase the confidence, skills and practice of the general practice workforce in listening and responding to those experiencing or at risk of suicidal ideation and/or suicidal behaviours.
· Pan-Sussex collaboration for GPs and staff working in primary care on debriefs after patient suicide.
· CDOP themed suicide prevention meetings delivered.
· Suicide Audit of three years of coroner’s records has been undertaken in Brighton and Hove. Workshop and final report with recommendations is planned in 2025.
· Signage audit conducted in Brighton and Hove and East Sussex
· Deeper understanding of local need and intelligence in Brighton and Hove gained through Health Counts survey of adults and Safe and Well at School Survey of school aged pupils. My Health, My School Survey completed annually in East Sussex reaching 10,000 pupils, capturing self-harm and suicide thoughts and behaviour.
Action Area 4: Communications, Engagement with media and online safety
· Establishment and development of Pan Sussex suicide prevention communications and engagement group to lead, develop and coordinate Sussex wide work. This includes the delivery of Mental health and suicide prevention communications and engagement plan for year-round awareness raising including world suicide prevention day, addressing older people and social isolation, males, females and children and young people and responses to incidents.
· Development of women’s communications hub by Grassroots.
· Pan Sussex communications signposting toolkit by SPFT has been developed with a parallel place based campaigns to raise awareness.
· Started to develop a strategic approach to reducing online-harms across Sussex governed under the Sussex Self-harm steering group and the Pan Sussex communications
· University of Brighton -policy support funding awarded to undertake research on online harms to: bring together current evidence to gain an understanding of the online lives of young people, including harms and benefits; gain insight from young people about what would help them to manage their digital lives, and from parents and schools about how we can support them with this issue and bring together professionals across Sussex to share learning about the digital lives of young people, existing services supporting young people and to develop future plans. The project will be delivered by autumn 2025.
· Work with local media regarding responsible reporting.
· Development and sharing of literature review of online harm harms spring 2024.
· Digital safety package for schools delivered.
· Reducing risk of sextortion project delivered across Sussex via Sussex Police and with councils.
· Development of online harm work including communications regarding safe and age-appropriate usage of what’s app and communications about reducing harms relating to reading distressing reports in the news globally or in your local area.
· Delivery of Hub of Hope campaign in partnership with Network Rail.
· Baton of Hope visiting Hastings Sept 2025, after successful application by Mr Hastings and St.Leonards (men’s mental health project).
Action Area 5: Lived Experience
• Mapping lived experience groups/fora – as the first step in moving towards a sustainable approach to the involvement of people with lived experience in suicide prevention planning and activity.
• The development of a lived experience network
Action Area 6: Reduce risk of self-harm
· Established a Pan Sussex Self Harm steering group in 2024 to develop and coordinate action on self-harm with a focus on children and young people.
· Delivered the Pan Sussex Self-harm learning network sessions and conference for professionals, parents, carers and young people, progress and evaluation reports provided for all sessions including well attended conference. November 2024.
· Pan-Sussex work in progress to develop better data systems to identify levels of self-harm and those who attempt to take their lives to enable opportunities for support and intervention.
· Reviewed and in the process of updating the Managing self-harm guidance and toolkit for school with Pan Sussex partners for delivery by March 2025.