How sport can help the industry with UK's worst suicide rate

We pass construction sites every day, but most of us don't realise that behind the flurry of activity and noise, the industry sees more men kill themselves than any other in England and Wales.

Steve Kerslake wants to change the way the industry deals with the mental health of its workers.

The groundworker, from Romford, suffered PTSD after he was the victim of an acid attack in 2009. Steve acknowledges that getting construction workers to talk about their issues is hard, but says focusing on sport can open up the floodgates and lead to the workers getting the help they need.

He has spent time with construction workers in Vauxhall and Hackney.

According to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics, there is a higher rate of suicide among men working in construction than any other industry.

On average two construction workers kill themselves every working day in England and Wales.

The rate is twice as high as in other occupations that also had high rates of suicide, such as drivers in the road transport industry and those working in agriculture.

For support and advice on issues in this film visit BBC Action Line.

Film by Ben Moore

We Are England explores real stories from across the country every Friday at 19:30 on BBC One.

You can watch the latest full episode on Friday 7 October on BBC One HD and BBC One in London, the South and South East.

The full series is available on iPlayer.

6 October 2022