The only previous community-based study of teenage self-harm in England was conducted eight years before the present study [4]. Hawton et al. examined prevalence of self-harm and thoughts of self-harm, but did not include questions regarding thoughts or plans to kill oneself [15], therefore they were not able to examine the relationship between self-harm and suicidal thoughts and plans. Based on more recent data collected from a population-based birth cohort once participants were 16/17 years old – the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) [16] - this paper examines the prevalence and inter-relationships between self-harm with and without a desire to die, suicidal thoughts and suicidal plans among this age group. Specifically these questions are addressed:
