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Suicide prevention plan under way Suicide plan 'overdue' - charity
(about 17 hours later)
Work on a suicide prevention action plan for Wales has been accelerated health minister Edwina Hart has said in a letter sent to all AMs. A suicide prevention strategy for the whole of Wales is long overdue, says the health charity Mind Cymru.
It was announced after the 17th suspected suicide of a young person in the Bridgend area in just over a year. Health Minister Edwina Hart has announced the strategy is being accelerated after the death of another teenager in the Bridgend area.
Ms Hart said the incidents highlighted the need to pull together the suicide prevention policy for Wales. Jenna Parry, 16, was found dead in woods at Cefn Cribwr, the 21st suspected suicide in just over a year.
A separate suicide prevention strategy has also been launched in Bridgend to tackle the deaths in the county. Mind Cymru welcomed the national strategy development and said Wales has been "lagging behind".
Ms Hart said her approach would take account of the Scottish Government's Choose Life anti-suicide campaign. Ruth Coombs, the charity's manager for influence and change, said: "What we know for Wales is do we have the highest rates of suicide among young men in the UK at the moment.
The assembly government wants a 10% reduction in suicides by 2012. "We also know that overall the rates have not changed significantly over the last six or so years unlike other countries who have got suicide strategies in place where the suicide rates have fallen.
Ms Hart's recommendations will be published within the next few months. 'Frustrating'
Among the areas highlighted was setting up school-based counselling services and it will receive £6.5m over the next three years. "For example in Scotland before their strategy came into place there rates of suicide were higher than they were in Wales, they're now lower than they are in Wales."
Ms Coombs said the lack of previous action on a national strategy was "frustrating", but the charity now welcomed the minister's statement and hoped to be included in the work on the strategy.
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Additional funding is also being made available so that three quarters of Local Education Authorities can be involved in the Welsh Network of Health School Schemes by March 2008 and all by March 2010. She said the Scottish campaign 'Choose Life' has been in place for at least four years" so we do feel Wales is lagging behind Scotland, Ireland, England and other countries across the world".
Edwina Hart announced on Wednesday that Wales' national suicide strategy was being accelerated would follow the Choose Life example. Full recommendations will be published in three months.
The assembly government wants a !0% drop in suicides by 2012.
School-based counselling services, recommended in the Clywch report into abuse by teacher John Owen at a Pontypridd school, are among the recommendations. These will receive £6.5m over three years.
Additional funding is also being made available so that three quarters of local education authorities can be involved in the Welsh Network of Health School Schemes by March 2008 and all by March 2010.
Work is currently underway to develop guidance for schools, local authorities and other partners in emotional health and well-being of pupils.Work is currently underway to develop guidance for schools, local authorities and other partners in emotional health and well-being of pupils.
Ms Hart also agreed there would be some early pilot projects in suicide prevention work. A separate suicide prevention strategy has also been launched to tackle the deaths in Bridgend county.
"I have also agreed that there will be some early pilot projects in suicide prevention work in those areas with the highest suicide rates and am aware that the rates vary across Wales and are not associated with one area. The minister also agreed there would be some early pilot projects.
"This is a national problem and not solely in one local authority area, so the projects will be in different parts of Wales," she said. "I have also agreed that there will be some early pilot projects in suicide prevention work in those areas with the highest suicide rates and am aware that the rates vary across Wales and are not associated with one area," said Ms Hart.
Ms Hart called on AMs to unite behind the work on the action plan which would get underway quickly. Meanwhile, the body co-ordinating an inquiry into the recent deaths of 17 youngsters in the county of Bridgend launched its separate strategy to try and prevent suicide amongst young people. Cluster
It came just hours after the body of Jenna Parry was found in woods at Cefn Cribwr near Bridgend. "This is a national problem and not solely in one local authority area, so the projects will be in different parts of Wales."
Suicide rates among men in Wales are currently the highest in the UK. Ms Coombs said the top priority with the strategy was to "take stock" of the services which exist
"Also supporting people who are affected by suicidal behaviour or attempted suicide or completed suicide but also looking at how we can gather information about what works, because at the moment there are lots of unknowns in Wales," she said.
Bridgend MP Madeleine Moon welcomed the speeding up of the strategy, saying it could develop from the local strategy which was already in place.
"Definitely, we have a problem, we've got a cluster of suicides in Bridgend that we need to sort out. Bridgend is one area of Wales, there are many areas of Wales that have a problem," the MP said