Rotherham's mums at risk of suicide, warning

Dr John Radford, the town’s director of public health, said single parents could be hit hardest by widespread welfare reforms putting extra pressure on cash-strapped households.

Speaking at a health conference at the Carlton Park Hotel, Dr Radford said Rotherham had seen a fall in suicides to well below the national average over the past few years.

But the senior doctor, who pointed out that only men had taken their own lives in Rotherham so far this year, warned that the suicide rate could rise again.

"Welfare reforms will have a big impact in Rotherham and it could be women, particularly single mothers, who are hit hardest by this,” he said.

Dr Radford also revealed that there was a ten-year life expectancy gap between people living in the most and least-deprived boroughs