Nottingham City Council

Nottingham City Council is a democratic organisation, with 55 Councillors representing electors in the 20 electoral wards in the City of Nottingham. Nottingham City Council is a key member of the Nottingham City Health and Wellbeing Board, a statutory partnership set up to lead and advise on work to improve the health and wellbeing of the population of Nottingham City and specifically to reduce health inequalities. The Health and Wellbeing Board approved the Nottingham City Suicide Prevention Strategy in 2015.

How does your organisation contribute to preventing suicide and supporting those affected by it?

Nottingham City Council has a statutory responsibility for Public Health. We are a key member of the Nottingham City Health and Wellbeing Board. The Board agreed a Suicide Prevention Strategy in 2015 with identified priorities. In partnership with Nottinghamshire County Council we bring together a multiagency partnership to share good practice and understand local needs better. This partnership has a detailed action plan that covers partner organisations in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire.

What are your current priorities?

Implement Suicide Prevention Strategy

– Convene multiagency partnership to work together to a partnership action plan across Nottinghamshire. Hold regular partnership meetings to share good practice and coordinate activity.

Improve understanding of local needs

– Improve understanding of local needs by working in partnership with Nottingham Coroner Service to complete an audit of deaths by suicide or self harm over a two year period. The findings will be shared with the local multiagency group and will inform a chapter in the Nottingham City Joint Strategic Needs Assessment. By understanding local needs better we can ensure the local action plan is responding to local needs. We also want to improve understanding of insight from the emergency services about response to people displaying suicidal behaviour.

Improve local response to those at risk of suicide

– We will commission training by a local 3rd sector provider on ASSIST suicide prevention training and mental health first aid, so that these courses can be offered free to those who may come into contact with people at risk of suicide.

Communication

– We will take opportunities to use the communication methods of the Local Authority to show support for suicide prevention work locally and link to national and local campaign dates ( eg WHO suicide prevention day)

Partnership support to Innovation project

– Nottingham City Public Health has agreed to provide partnership support to a 3rd sector provider who are introducing a suicide prevention and bereavement support service locally.

What challenges are you currently facing?

We are working at a time when cuts to Local Authority funding and to Public Health budgets limit innovation in new projects and put pressure on services to those who are vulnerable.