Yesterday, the NHS released the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey (APMS) for 23/2024. This provides data on both treated and untreated mental health difficulties within the adult population in England.
The report summarises that many mental health presentations are on the rise, including more than a fifth (22.6%) of adults aged 16-64 are reporting a common mental health condition; this has also increased from 18.9% in 2018.
Harmless and The Tomorrow Project are national leaders in self-harm, suicide prevention, and suicide bereavement. The report mirrors the increase in self-harm and suicidal thoughts that we have seen in our services, and whilst our clinical services are funded in some areas, not all areas have a service like ours to support people struggling with self-harm, thoughts of suicide, or suicide attempts.
Source: Butt, S., Randall, E., Morris, S., Appleby, L., Hassiotis, A., John, A., McCabe, R., & McManus, S. (2025). Suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts and non-suicidal self-harm. In Morris, S., Hill, S., Brugha, T., McManus, S. (Eds.), Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey: Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing, England, 2023/4. NHS England.
The above graph illustrates the increase in self-harm, suicidal thoughts, and suicidal attempts people are experiencing from 2000-2024.
More than one in four adults reported having suicidal thoughts during their lifetime, including:
- almost a third of 16-24 year-olds
- almost a third of 25-34 year-olds
- over a quarter of 35-44 year-olds
- over a quarter of 45-54 year-olds
The line on the above graph for suicide attempts looks flat compared to the others, but suicide attempts have risen from 0.5% in 2000 to 1% in 2023/4. Given the nationwide trauma of the Covid-19 pandemic, the significant rise in the cost-of-living, and social inequality for marginalised groups, we aren’t surprised that experiences of suicide crisis are increasing as this mirrors the increased referrals into our own suicide crisis service.
We are also concerned to see that self-harm rates have quadrupled since 2000, and this increase is within all genders and across age groups, defying the stereotype that self-harm is only affecting young women. 83% of those who self-harm state they did so to relieve feelings such as anger, tension, anxiety, or depression; all common emotions and feelings, which is why addressing common mental health difficulties is vital for the self-harm and suicide prevention mission. This rise also mirrors the increased demand we are seeing within our self-harm clinical services.
The report also shows demographic and socioeconomic inequalities. Self-harm, suicidal thoughts, and suicide attempts were more likely to be reported amongst young people, people of a ‘mixed, multiple, or other’ ethnicity, those with physical health conditions that limit their activites, and those experiencing debt or unemployment.
This report may feel disheartening and overwhelming to read, but it’s important to know that services are working hard to support people in need. Harmless are:
- Providing a practical intervention to those whose self-harm or suicidal thoughts are driven by debt or unemployment, allowing quick resolution of these practical difficulties.
- Working to translate documents to improve access to people of minority ethnic backgrounds.
- Working on numerous innovative interventions to ensure support can be accessed quickly whilst on a waiting list.
- Undertaking research with children and young people to better understand attrition rates from mental health services, to enable us to better tailor our services to this age group.
- Mobilising a new outreach strategy, to better reach out to people with physical health conditions and disabilities, minority ethnic communities, and various other marginalised groups.
- Launching a new parents and carers service, to better support loved ones of the young people who are struggling disproportionately to other age groups.
Whilst delivering our self-harm, suicide prevention, and suicide bereavement clinical services to people in need.
This report raises vital awareness for people’s mental health experiences. Harmless recommends that:
- Self-harm and suicide prevention is remains a priority, as part of national and local health and wellbeing strategy.
- The NHS is sufficiently equipped and funded to manage a range of mental health presentations, from common mental health difficulties, to self-harm, suicide crisis and chronic suicidality, to secondary care and tertiary care mental health needs.
- The third sector is also sufficiently equipped and funded to maximise resources, utilise expertise, and ensure people are supported quickly and responsively.
- To ensure lived experience is embedded throughout all service delivery and design.
- Suicide prevention is included in every aspect of national and local strategy, including physical health, employment, social care, anti-racism, and poverty strategies. Suicide prevention is everyone’s business.
To refer yourself or someone you know into our service for support, all referral forms can be found here. You are not alone, we are here, there is hope.
References:
Butt, S., Randall, E., Morris, S., Appleby, L., Hassiotis, A., John, A., McCabe, R., & McManus, S. (2025). Suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts and non-suicidal self-harm. In Morris, S., Hill, S., Brugha, T., McManus, S. (Eds.), Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey: Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing, England, 2023/4. NHS England.
Morris, S., Hill, S., Brugha, T., McManus, S. (Eds.), Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey: Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing, England, 2023/4. NHS England.
