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Open ->DescriptionSuicide and self-harm statistics for Black communities in the UK: rates, help-seeking barriers, protective factors, and prevention gaps. ONS linked census data & Samaritans.
Suicide by Ethnicity and Religion — Full ONS Analysis
Overview
Suicide Rates by Ethnicity — Men
Suicide Rates by Ethnicity — Women
Religion as a Protective Factor
Self-Harm
Help-Seeking Patterns
Barriers to Help-Seeking
Black Young People
Prevention Gaps
Support Resources
Suicide & Self-Harm in Black Communities | UK Data & Research 2023
This page contains data about suicide and self-harm.
Samaritans on 116 123
SHOUT to 85258
Black-Led Charities directory
Research Report
This site hosts a dedicated research report covering the ONS linked census methodology in full — including confidence intervals, model-based rate tables, religion breakdowns, and a complete 7-source directory. The report covers 35.1 million people and 35,928 suicides across 2011–2021.
Read the full research report
Suicide and self-harm data for Black communities in the UK is limited by a fundamental structural gap: ethnicity and religion are not recorded on death certificates in England and Wales. The only official route to suicide rates by ethnicity is linkage of death registrations to Census data — a method with important limitations, including wide confidence intervals for smaller ethnic groups and the use of 2011 Census ethnicity data for deaths occurring up to 2021.
Methodology note:
Rates are ONS model-based estimates per 100,000 over the 10-year study period (2011–2021) at the average cohort age of 45. These are
not
classic annual age-standardised rates. Values marked
est.
full research report
for confidence intervals.
The ONS bulletin explicitly states that estimated suicide rates were highest in White and Mixed or Multiple ethnic groups for men, and lowest for the Arab ethnic group. Black or Black British men fall below the white average, though the confidence intervals for Black subgroups are wide due to smaller numbers in the linked cohort.
The same pattern holds for women: White and Mixed or Multiple ethnic groups show the highest rates; Arab and Black or Black British women show the lowest. The ONS bulletin explicitly states that rates were lowest for the Arab ethnic group for both sexes.
for confidence intervals and full religion breakdown.
Note: Figures are drawn from qualitative survey research and should be treated as indicative rather than precise population estimates.
Samaritans
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116 123
Shout Crisis Text Line
Text-based crisis support, 24/7
Text SHOUT to 85258
Black Minds Matter UK
Connecting Black people with Black therapists
blackmindsmatteruk.com
40 organisations providing mental health and community support
View directory
Sources:
labelMixed / Multiple — Men
labelWhite — Men
labelBlack / Black British — Men
labelAsian / Asian British — Men
labelArab — Men
labelMixed / Multiple — Women
labelWhite — Women
labelBlack / Black British — Women
labelAsian / Asian British — Women
labelArab — Women
labelOther religion — Men
labelBuddhist — Men
labelNo religion — Men
labelChristian — Men
labelMuslim — Men
labelStigma within community / family
labelDistrust of NHS mental health services
labelFear of detention / compulsory treatment
labelLack of culturally competent therapists
labelBelief that faith should be sufficient
labelSuicide & Self-Harm
labelBlack / Black British
labelWhite British
23.56
21.03
~8.7 (est.)
~7.2 (est.)
3.75
9.57
6.79
~2.8 (est.)
~2.4 (est.)
2.54
33.19
26.58
~22.0
~14.0
5.14
GP for mental health
Crisis line contact
A&E for mental health
Faith / community support
78% cite this
71%
64%
59%
47%
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Suicide & Self-Harm in Black Communities | UK Data & Research
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Suicide and self-harm statistics for Black communities in the UK: rates, help-seeking barriers, protective factors, and prevention gaps.
UK Black Demographics
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Suicide rates, self-harm, help-seeking barriers, protective factors data for Black communities. ONS linked census data & Samaritans.
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Research
Dataset
Suicide & Self-Harm in Black Communities — UK Data
Data on suicide rates, self-harm, help-seeking barriers, protective factors, and prevention gaps for Black communities in the UK.
keywords
Black British suicide rates
self-harm ethnicity UK
Black mental health suicide UK
suicide prevention Black communities
ONS suicide ethnicity data
creator
Organization
ONS / NHS Digital / Samaritans
dateModified
2023
Suicide rates by ethnicity and religion, self-harm data, help-seeking barriers, protective factors, and gaps in prevention — drawn from ONS linked census data, NHS Digital, and Samaritans research.
Lower
Suicide rates in Black communities vs white — ONS linked census 2011–2021
ONS 2023
Religion & community
Primary protective factors identified in Black communities
Samaritans 2017
Data limited
Self-harm rates by ethnicity — not routinely published by NHS
NHS Digital
Rising concern
Suicidal ideation among Black young people — particularly girls
NHS MHCYP 2023
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Model-Based Suicide Rate per 100,000 — Men, by Ethnicity (2011–2021)
ONS — Sociodemographic inequalities in suicides, England and Wales: 2011 to 2021 (March 2023)
source=
unit=
Muslim men — model-based suicide rate per 100,000 (vs 21.03 for white men)
2.15
Muslim women — model-based suicide rate per 100,000 (vs 6.79 for white women)
~80%
Black African adults identifying as Christian — highest of any ethnic group
Census 2021
Model-Based Suicide Rate per 100,000 — Men, by Religion (2011–2021)
and
Self-harm rates by ethnicity — not routinely published in NHS annual statistics
Lower (adults)
Self-harm rates among Black adults vs white adults — consistent with suicide data
APMS 2014
Self-harm among Black girls and young women — some studies show converging rates
Black people seeking help from NHS or crisis lines for suicidal distress vs white people
mt-6
black
white
Routes to Support for Mental Health Distress — Black vs White (% who used each route)
Samaritans — Dying from Inequality 2017; Centre for Mental Health 2020 (indicative estimates)
xKey=
Barriers to Help-Seeking for Suicidal Distress — Black Communities (% citing each barrier)
Samaritans — Dying from Inequality 2017; Centre for Mental Health — BAME Mental Health 2020 (qualitative survey data)
3×
Higher permanent school exclusion rate for Black Caribbean pupils vs white British — a known suicide risk factor
DfE 2022/23
Less likely
Black children with probable mental disorder to have discussed it with a professional vs white peers
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Significant
Gaps in culturally adapted suicide prevention for Black communities — identified in the National Suicide Prevention Strategy 2023–2028
DHSC 2023
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sms:85258
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