Issue - meetings

The Panel considered the report of the Interim Director of Public Health requesting that the Panel consider the draft Southampton Suicide Prevention Plan.

Debbie Chase (Interim Director of Public Health), Amy McCullough (Public Health Consultant), Chris Watts (STP Suicide Prevention Programme Manager), Sabina Stanescu (Public Health Practitioner) and Joe Hannigan were in attendance and, with the consent of the Chair, addressed the meeting.

Officers delivered to the Panel a presentation which detailed issues relating to suicide prevention within the City.  The Panel discussed a number of points including:

·  The potential of using the Council’s planning policies to design in suicide risk reduction measures for new developments at the start of the process;

·  The steps taken to engage with men in their 50’s, a high risk group, and whether there had been any engagement with Trade Unions to proactively target suicide prevention initiatives and advice;

·  That the prevention strategy should reflect and link to measures seeking to combat bullying through social media;

·  Whether the strategy should reflect the potential to target access to over the counter medicines;

·  Whether more could be done linking community support for families to build resilience and raise community awareness and support through locally based teams within the City;

·  The action that had been taken to heighten awareness of the dangers of suicide within services that interact with potentially vulnerable people to ensure that they are able to identify risk factors and make referrals;

·  The importance of ensuring that the prevention plan becomes embedded and that practices are sustained after the initial project work has been undertaken; and

·  The importance of consulting on the draft suicide prevention plan with those agencies that interact with vulnerable people.

RESOLVED that

1)  Consideration is given to including within the Southampton 2020-23 Suicide Prevention Plan reference to the following:

a.  Opportunities to design in suicide risk reduction measures for new developments at the start of the process, potentially through the use of the Council’s planning process.

b.  Reflecting the risk profile for middle aged men, engaging with the Trade Unions to proactively target suicide reduction initiatives and advice.

c.  Social media and bullying, reflecting the whole school approach to mental health and wellbeing in Southampton.

d.  Action to target the over prescribing of over the counter medicines if evidence support this.

e.  Linking the proposals for locality based teams that support families in Southampton with suicide prevention activity to raise awareness of support and build community and family resilience.

f.  Opportunities to expand networks with service providers that interact with vulnerable people when evidence suggests the risk of suicide is heightened, such as debt advice and relationship counselling services, to ensure that they are able to identify risk factors and signpost to support services.

2)  That sustainability is embedded within the Suicide Prevention Plan reflecting the funding limitations.

3)  That the agencies and service providers that interact with vulnerable people when evidence suggests the risk of suicide is heightened are consulted on the draft Suicide Prevention Plan.