¹ The Prison Service/NOMS definition of self-inflicted deaths is broader than the legal definition of suicide and includes all deaths where it appears that a prisoner has acted specifically to take their own life. This inclusive approach is used in part because inquest verdicts are often not available for some years after a death (some 20 per cent. of these deaths will not receive a suicide or open verdict at inquest). Annual numbers may change slightly from time to time as inquest verdicts and other information become available.

¹ The Prison Service/NOMS defines self-harm as any incident where a prisoner deliberately harms themselves irrespective of method, intent or severity of any injury. The numbers of self-harm incidents reported here are based on information supplied by prisons through the Prison Service Incident Reporting System. Many self-harm incidents often involve the same individuals, and changing numbers of incidents at different prisons can reflect the movement of such prisoners. Self-harm is a high volume incident that can be subject to technical and recording problems. While the system provides a sensible indication of the scale of self-harm the numbers of incidents should not be treated as absolute.