The Traveller Movement: Policy briefing addressing mental health and suicide among Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities in England

Office for National Statistics (ONS) data reveal that there were 18,998 suicides in men and women aged between 20 and 64 years between 2011 and 2015, and that suicide is the leading cause of death in England in adults below the age of 50. Mortality data published by the ONS are collected from the information provided at death registration but as this information does not include the ethnicity of the deceased, there are no official data on deaths by suicide among Gypsies, Roma and Traveller (GRT) individuals in England and Wales. As noted by the Department of Health the failure to collect ethnic data through the death registration and inquest processes ‘is a major obstacle to getting reliable and accurate data on suicides and to improving the evidence base and monitoring trends’