Young people are among those most at risk of suicide

A report from the National Director for Mental Health found the suicide rate for 2001-03 was 8.6 per 100,000 of population, down from a peak of 11.4 recorded 14 years ago.

Professor Louis Appleby hailed the progress made in mental health treatment, saying the government aimed to meet its target of reducing the rate to 7.4 suicides per 100,000 by 2010.

He pointed to an increase in staff as well as better risk assessment as being behind the record drop.

Professor Appleby was also quick to acknowledge that more needs to be done, such as ensuring an even spread of funding across Britain and improving services for ethnic minorities.

Stigma

But it would appear the biggest challenge remains that of removing the stigma attached to mental health problems.

Welcoming the report, Health Minister Rosie Winterton signalled the government's recognition of the problem: "We are determined to tackle and eradicate stigma, inequalities, discrimination and the social exclusion of people with mental health problems.

"Reform and investment of mental health services is beginning to make a real difference to the lives of people with mental health problems and their families."

Self-harm is the biggest single indicator of a risk of suicide Sarah Nelson Samaritans

Paul Corry, Rethink's director of campaigns and communications, outlined some of those reforms that have made a difference to people at risk.

"The means for patients to take their own lives on wards has been reduced - coat hooks have been removed off doors and shower rails are now much weaker. Out-patients are now targeted more after they have left hospital," he said.

The size of paracetamols had also been reduced, making it harder for people to take their own lives by means of an overdose.

Self-harm

Changes like these have improved the situation for many people with emotional problems, but the pain persists for others.

Marjorie Wallace, chief executive of the charity Sane, said: "While no one can question the well-meaning intentions and rhetoric, or the improvement for some mental health patients over the past five years, we have yet to see significant change in the lives of the majority of the 1,000 people who call us each week.

"The rate is still high, especially among young men and mentally ill people in prison. There is also disturbing evidence that the numbers of those self-harming are growing, and that they are doing so in increasingly damaging ways."

Many still find it hard to ask for help, Samaritans said

That was an immensely worrying trend, according the Sarah Nelson of the Samaritans.

"Self-harm is the biggest single indicator of a risk of suicide," she said.

"Just because someone self-harms doesn't mean they will definitely eventually take their own lives, but they are 100 times more likely to do so at some point."

And she said the rate of drug and alcohol abuse among young people, one of the main at-risk groups, showed a rise as well.

She said it was important to remember that suicide was the end point of a long line of distress, and that just because the figures were down at present it did not necessarily mean that the figures would remain so positive.

So long as the stigma attached to mental problems remained, she said, so too would the threat of these figures soon starting to climb once again.