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Commissioned by PAPYRUS and funded by the Big Lottery, the RaPSS (Responses and Prevention in Student Suicide) study, undertaken by researchers at the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) and Kings College London, reveals that three-quarters of the deaths studied had occurred either towards the end or at the start of the academic year. In some cases this transitional period collided with a student’s tendencies towards perfectionism and the fear of failure.

The report also highlighted a number of additional key findings:
· A number of factors interacted with students’ mental health problems including relationship difficulties, heavy use of alcohol and drugs, financial and academic problems.
· In a small number of the cases studied, students’ behaviour was clearly influenced by another death.
· Many of the students were concerned about the stigma associated with use of mental health services and some were unwilling to use university or NHS support services.
· Antidepressant medication appeared to be the main intervention offered by General Practitioners. Students’ friends and parents reported that a number of those who died had thought taking antidepressants was stigmatising and ineffective.
· Not all university/college support services and NHS services seemed to communicate effectively and some parents thought that more could have been done to keep them informed.

The full research report is available at a price of £17.50 from PAPYRUS at rapss@papyrus-uk.org, telephone 01282 432555 or write Lodge House Thompson Park, Ormerod Road Burnley BB11 2RU.

You can also download a pdf of the report summary here, and a pdf of the full report here.

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