Preventing suicides on release from police custody: risk factors, contextual characteristics, policy, practice and future research
Grant Details
N8 Policing Research Partnership PolicePriority Grant
Project Start and End Date
1/10/2026 - 31/07/2027
Research Team
Co-I - Katie Weir, University of Sheffield.
Co-I - Professor Catherine Robinson, University of Manchester
Co-I - Emma Tuschick, University of Newcastle
Co-I - Dr Iain Mckinnon, University of Newcastle
Background and Aims
Police custody plays a central role in the lives of the 900,000 people in England and Wales who are detained each year. This project focuses on an urgent issue: suicides on release from police custody, which have remained at 55-65 per year for the last decade. This is in spite of Angiolini Review recommendations in 2017 for improvements to pre-release risk assessments and planning, referral and handover, information and follow up support, suggesting they have been partially and inconsistently implemented.
This timely project therefore aims to systematically understand custodial risk factors associated with post-custody suicides, asking: What patterns of custody-related experiences are identifiable amongst those who die by suicide post-release?
To what extent do these patterns vary by socio-demographic characteristics, including age, gender, ethnicity and offence type, as well as by force and suicide method?
What insights can be drawn regarding the mechanisms and contextual factors underpinning these deaths when considered in conjunction with existing research and evidence?
What are the implications of these findings for the design of future research, in particular the development of comparative and causal analytical approaches
What are the implications of findings for strategies aimed at reducing suicides following release from police custody?
Method
This is a mixed-methods research design, in which qualitative analysis adds a further textual layer of understanding to the quantitative findings.
Quantitative analysis
Latent Class Analysis (LCA) is used to identify distinct profiles across cases, based on combinations of variables rather than examining each factor in isolation.
Multinomial logistic regression is then used to examine how membership of these profiles varies by demographic, situational, geographic and outcome-related characteristics.
Qualitative analysis
Basic categorical information is collected for all 426 cases from coroners' inquests and related public records, including verdicts, Prevention of Future Death (PFD) reports and media coverage.
A purposely selected subset of 20 cases will be examined in greater depth and chosen to illuminate key mechanisms such as ethnicity, access to healthcare, engagement with Liaison and Diversion services, and inter-agency coordination.
Research Advisory group
The research findings will be regularly shared with and discussed with members of the project’s research advisory group, which is made up of representatives from the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC), the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), Independent Advisory Panel on Deaths in Custody (IAPDC), Liaison and Diversion and other criminal justice and health professionals.
Outputs, knowledge exchange and impact
The project will lead to an end-of-project event in July 2027 and subsequent final report published by the Centre for Criminological Research in Autumn 2027, as well as presentations at academic conferences and academic journal articles.
Beyond its academic significance, this study is designed to generate meaningful impact. It will lead to evidence-informed recommendations intended to impact on policy and practice at national and regional levels, as well as cross-jurisdictional knowledge exchange.