Latest news with #suicidePrevention
BBC News
09-07-2025
- BBC News
Handsworth Post Office victim to return to family business
A postmistress who lost her Post Office branch after being wrongly accused of stealing money plans to return to her family business next Gill ran the Wattville Road Post Office in Handsworth in Birmingham and was one of hundreds to be accused or convicted of theft and fraud because of a faulty computer system, branch was started by her father in 1976 and then handed down to her and she said: "My father always wanted us to get it back somehow."Yesterday a report was released, looking at the impact on victims, as well as the fairness and speed of the compensation process. The report said the scandal had a "disastrous" impact on those said at least 59 people contemplated suicide at various points, of whom 10 attempted to take their own lives, and more than 13 people may have killed themselves due to the Post Office has apologised unreservedly for what it called a "shameful period" in its Gill said she had considered suicide herself and it was "saddening" to hear how so many others had been said when the allegations first emerged of money going missing from her Post Office, there was an assumption in the local community that she was guilty."Everybody started talking about it, everybody said you did it," she said."People just automatically believed what was said."To try to balance the books and stay out of jail, she said she ended up missing card and mortgage payments and her parents had to sell a property to keep her inquiry, led by Sir Wyn Williams, criticised the speed of compensation, saying that for many claimants it had not been delivered "promptly".Ms Gill, one of those still waiting for her compensation, said: "I just want it finished."Now, she said the local community was "behind me 100%" and wanted her to get her Post Office back."I've watched these people in there for the last 15 years," she said."My father always wanted us to get it back somehow and next year will be 50 years of us having the business, and that's one thing I wanted to do for him and his memory." Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Irish Times
08-07-2025
- Irish Times
Dozens contemplated suicide over UK Post Office scandal, says official report
Dozens of people contemplated taking their own life because of their experiences of the Post Office Horizon IT scandal, an official report has found. More than 1,000 post office operators wrongly accused of taking money from their branches because of faulty software. Bankruptcy, divorce and vitriolic abuse from the public were among the other 'harrowing' impacts laid bare in a long-awaited report from the inquiry on Tuesday. The inquiry chairman, retired judge Sir Wyn Williams, said at least 59 people 'contemplated suicide at various points in time' and 'attributed this to their experiences with Horizon and/or the Post Office'. READ MORE He described it as a 'common experience' among both people who were prosecuted and those who were not and said 10 of the 59 had attempted to take their own lives, some on more than one occasion. His report said the families of six former postmasters and seven others who were not postmasters claimed they had taken their own lives 'as a consequence of Horizon showing an illusory shortfall in branch accounts'. Mr Williams said it was a 'real possibility' the 13 had died as a result of their experiences of the scandal. He said: 'I should stress that whist I cannot make a definitive finding that there is a causal connection between the deaths of all 13 persons and Horizon, I do not rule it out as a real possibility. 'It is also possible that more than 13 persons, as indicated by the Post Office in response to the inquiry's requests in March 2025, died by suicide but that some deaths have not been reported to the Post Office or the inquiry.' Mr Williams's report told of the range of ways in which the devastating fallout of the scandal affected Post Office workers and their families, from investigations to convictions. He wrote: 'Nearly all the persons interviewed under caution by Post Office investigators will have been in wholly unfamiliar territory and they will have found the experience to be troubling at best and harrowing at worst.' For those who were jailed 'life may have seemed close to unbearable' at times, while others who were convicted but not imprisoned often faced 'hostile and abusive behaviour from members of the public in the locality'. The convicted people who gave evidence to the inquiry told of the 'psychiatric and psychological problems which dogged them throughout the Post Office's audit and investigation process, the criminal process and thereafter'. Mr Williams said a 'significant number' of those prosecuted and convicted said they contemplated self-harm, while 19 people said they had abused alcohol 'and attributed this to their experiences with Horizon and/or the Post Office'. It is thought approximately 1,000 people have been wrongly prosecuted and convicted across the UK between 1999 and 2015, with somewhere between 50 and 60 people prosecuted but not convicted, Mr Williams said. Those who were acquitted still faced being 'ostracised in their local community', the report noted. Postmasters who were suspended or had their contracts terminated 'suffered heightened distress and worry' over their loss of business, income and the effects on their family, it added. If branches closed they 'became the object of local hostility and adverse local publicity'. Many convicted postmasters were declared bankrupt, described by the report as a 'complicating factor in a number of claims brought by claimants'. Some evidence laid out the 'catalogue of misfortunes which befell' postmasters and their families. The report said: 'Wives, husbands, children and parents endured very significant suffering in the form of distress, worry and disruption (to home life, in employment and in education). 'In a number of cases relationships with spouses and partners broke down and ended in divorce or separation.' The report said that on many occasions 'immediate family members were forced to endure vitriolic abuse from persons within their local or cultural community'. Elderly parents had provided financial support using their savings in some cases to help children who were sub-postmasters, with the report adding: 'Some of those convicted spoke of their immense regret that parents had not lived to see their convictions being quashed.' The inquiry chairman also paid tribute to the 'fortitude and determination' of spouses and other close relatives of those postmasters who died before having their convictions quashed on appeal. - PA/Guardian
The Independent
02-07-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Starmer pledges to review minimum barrier heights in multi-storey car parks
Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to review the safety of multi-storey car parks, following the death of a 15-year-old boy in Liverpool. Gabriel Santer died after falling from the top of a multi-storey car park in the city centre in October 2020. The Prime Minister said he wanted to 'prevent future tragedies', and the Government will conduct a call for evidence on minimum barrier heights in car parks. This came after Labour MP Peter Dowd urged Sir Keir to back his calls to increase the minimum required height of guarding. Mr Dowd's Multi-Storey Car Parks (Safety) Bill also proposes 24-hour staffing of such car parks, to improve safety. During Prime Minister's Questions, Mr Dowd, MP for Bootle said: 'Gabe Santer, a 15-year-old, fell to his death from a multi-storey car park in Liverpool in 2020. He's one of the many dying in such tragic circumstances, including in my constituency. 'My Multi-Storey Car Parks (Safety) Bill seeks to prevent such deaths. 'Will the Government look carefully at its content as part of a national suicide prevention strategy?' The Prime Minister replied: 'The answer is yes, we will look at the content of it, and I'm grateful to him for raising it.' He added: 'Across the House, we have all got tragic experience of suicide, and our thoughts are with Gabe's family and with his friends. 'We will conduct a call for evidence on part K of the building regulations about minimum guarding heights, so that necessary protections are in place to prevent future tragedies. We will also look at the contents of the Bill.' Defence minister Maria Eagle previously presented 'Gabe's Law' to Parliament in 2023, in a bid to reform the safety of car parks.
Yahoo
02-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Starmer pledges to review minimum barrier heights in multi-storey car parks
Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to review the safety of multi-storey car parks, following the death of a 15-year-old boy in Liverpool. Gabriel Santer died after falling from the top of a multi-storey car park in the city centre in October 2020. The Prime Minister said he wanted to 'prevent future tragedies', and the Government will conduct a call for evidence on minimum barrier heights in car parks. This came after Labour MP Peter Dowd urged Sir Keir to back his calls to increase the minimum required height of guarding. Mr Dowd's Multi-Storey Car Parks (Safety) Bill also proposes 24-hour staffing of such car parks, to improve safety. During Prime Minister's Questions, Mr Dowd, MP for Bootle said: 'Gabe Santer, a 15-year-old, fell to his death from a multi-storey car park in Liverpool in 2020. He's one of the many dying in such tragic circumstances, including in my constituency. 'My Multi-Storey Car Parks (Safety) Bill seeks to prevent such deaths. 'Will the Government look carefully at its content as part of a national suicide prevention strategy?' The Prime Minister replied: 'The answer is yes, we will look at the content of it, and I'm grateful to him for raising it.' He added: 'Across the House, we have all got tragic experience of suicide, and our thoughts are with Gabe's family and with his friends. 'We will conduct a call for evidence on part K of the building regulations about minimum guarding heights, so that necessary protections are in place to prevent future tragedies. We will also look at the contents of the Bill.' Defence minister Maria Eagle previously presented 'Gabe's Law' to Parliament in 2023, in a bid to reform the safety of car parks.
News24
27-06-2025
- News24
‘My job as a hostage and suicide negotiator is fulfilling but also soul-crushing'
Growing up in Port Elizabeth (now Gqeberha) in the Eastern Cape, Tramaine Fredericks (34) always dreamt of serving her country. After high school she applied to study law but wasn't accepted, so she pursued a degree in human resources at Nelson Mandela University. During her internship at Humewood police station in 2012, a captain encouraged her to join the SAPS – which she did. Six years into her service with the Rapid Rail unit, Tramaine challenged herself by training as a hostage and suicide negotiator. Now, with nerves of steel and a calm demeanour, she coaxes those on the brink of ending their lives or contends with hostage situations as one of the Eastern Cape's youngest hostage and suicide negotiators. This is her story. 'I was very hesitant at first to join the SAPS, but when a post became available a few months later, I applied. I then went to Bisho Academy to do my basic training. A year later, in 2013, I was placed at New Brighton police station for my probation. This is when my love for working in the force started because I began working a lot with the community. I loved that I could assist. In 2014 I had my final placement in the Rapid Rail Unit. Back then we worked at the Shosholoza Mail – the trains that travelled from Gqeberha to Johannesburg. I had been in the SAPS for six years in 2020 when I decided I needed to upgrade my skills – I believe you shouldn't be complacent at work. So I set my sights on the basic hostage and suicide negotiator course. Before enrolling I spoke to other negotiators who told me it was a very male-dominated and dangerous field, but I've always loved a challenge. READ MORE| MY STORY | 'My world came crashing down when I lost my leg in a mining accident' For three weeks I underwent an intense process that included interviews, psychometric tests and training. After completing the programme I continued working in the Rail Rapid Department, but I'm now also on call every three weeks as a hostage and suicide negotiator. Since joining the negotiating team I've responded to many calls, but two specific ones come to mind. One incident took place in 2020, a few weeks after completing the course. I was called to attend to a woman who wanted to slit her wrists and end her life. I remember getting to her home and sitting on the ground next to her. As I was speaking to her, she was nodding, and I eventually managed to talk her out of it. It was the most rewarding experience because it was one of my first incidents. To this day, when I see her in the neighbourhood, she tells me I made her realise there is more to live for and that she's never had suicidal thoughts again. The Eastern Cape is known as one of the highest kidnapping provinces, so I have worked on a few high-profile kidnapping cases. There was one in April when a Chinese national was kidnapped while travelling to his business in Kariega. I worked on this case for a week, dealing with the family and trying to keep them calm during the ordeal. Fortunately we found the victim after a few days of negotiating for the ransom to be dropped. Although I love what I do, it's not always easy. I'm human, and I have emotions. READ MORE| MY STORY | 'How my gap year inspired an app that connects people with causes that matter' To decompress, we are offered therapy, but I usually enjoy going hiking to clear my mind, or I take short trips. My other function in the SAPS is as a trainer. I help train new students who join the academy, teaching them about using firearms, legal principles and tactical movements. In my 13 years in the SAPS, being a negotiator has been one of the best decisions I've made, but it can also be soul-crushing.'
