Bolton's suicide rate is fifth highest in north west

There were 93 suicides in the borough over a three-year period – equivalent to almost 12 for every 100,000 people living in the town.

This puts Bolton 15th highest for suicide nationally, with the largest number of deaths in Greater Manchester outside Manchester city centre.

But experts say Bolton’s suicide rate — which rose from 2004 and peaked between 2007 and 2008 — has now started to fall after previously being as high as third nationally.

Female suicides, which spiked around 2008, have also reduced. Previously the suicide rate for women in Bolton was 111 per cent higher than the England average.

The newly-released report by Bolton’s suicide prevention partnership relies on figures from between 2011 and 2013 – the most recent available data.

Analysis of coroners files by Bolton's Health Matters experts suggest 74 per cent of people who killed themselves in this period were male.

The majority, 34 per cent, were aged 18 to 44 but there was a large increase in suicide among older people.

The number of men aged 65 and over who killed themselves nearly doubled, from 4.8 per cent to 13.9 per cent, and suicide in women aged 45 to 64 increased from 4.8 per cent 13.9 per cent.

Almost half of Bolton’s suicides were carried out by people living in the town’s most deprived areas.

Four in ten (41 per cent) were in full time employment and more than half (55.6 per cent) had a known history of mental illness.

The report puts the average cost of a suicide of a working aged individual in England as £1.67 million – defined by the loss of life, pain and suffering of relatives, wages, public service time, funeral costs.

The report, authored by Jayne Cook, Bolton Council’s health improvement specialist in mental health and suicide prevention, and Mark Cook, the council’s public health intelligence specialist, states: “Suicide is not inevitable.

“Preventing suicides is a complex and challenging issue, but there are effective solutions for many, if not most of the individual factors which contribute towards the risk of suicide.

“Suicide prevention work is cost-effective when conducted in accordance with evidence and by working in partnership.

“Local government, statutory services, the third sector, local communities, and families each have a role to play.”

A spokesman for Bolton Council said: “The effects of suicide can be devastating and far-reaching and in Bolton we are working hard with our partners to address the issues that could be a factor when people consider taking their own life.

“The rate of suicides per borough is an average of the previous three years and while we may be the fifth highest in the region, there are no statistically significant differences between us and other parts of the north west.

“Any death due to suicide is regrettable, however, numbers are relatively low and can fluctuate year on year. There was a peak among women in 2008 but this has since declined in line with the national picture.

“The Suicide Prevention Partnership is a group consisting of a range of front line staff, including the public, private, voluntary and community sector, whose purpose is to ensure that their organisation understands its commitments and responsibilities with regards to suicide prevention.

“We are also looking at training more staff in order to raise awareness of suicide, help staff to be able to spot signs and symptoms and provide them with adequate skills to discuss suicide and support individuals to access appropriate services.”