The University of Bristol has confirmed the “sudden and unexpected” death of a first-year English student – the third student to die at the prestigious Russell Group institution in three weeks.

A university spokesperson said the student, Ben Murray, died on Saturday. There were no suspicious circumstances and an inquest will be held by the coroner in due course.

A statement released by the university authorities urged students affected by the recent deaths and those feeling anxious about forthcoming summer examinations to seek help from the support services available.



“It is with great sadness that we confirm the sudden and unexpected death of first-year English student Ben Murray. Ben passed away on Saturday 5 May. There are no suspicious circumstances around his death, and an inquest will be held by the coroner in due course,” it said.

“We have spoken with Ben’s family whom our thoughts are with. We work hard every day to keep our students safe and secure and to provide an environment and support network where they can thrive and grow.

“When we hear the news of a student death it hits us all very hard. It will be particularly distressing for those who knew Ben.”

The statement continued: “This is the third death in a short period of time and the university is doing everything we can, with the support of partner agencies, to support all those affected by this news.”

Ten students from the University of Bristol and two from the University of the West of England, which is also in Bristol, have died since October 2016, of which a number have been confirmed as suicides.

The university urged any students or staff affected by events to contact its wellbeing services, as well as seeking support from friends and family. “We know this can be a particularly stressful time of year with exams coming up and would encourage our students to make use of the advice and support available to help with this,” it said.



Commenting on the latest deaths, Bristol vice-chancellor Hugh Brady said: “Sadly we have suffered the loss of a number of our students in the past two years. It is a tragedy that we all feel deeply. I feel strongly that for any institution to get ahead of the growing problem it needs to take a joined-up and proactive approach.

“At Bristol there has been major investment to support student wellbeing in our academic schools, in our central services, and in halls of residence.

“The challenges of mental health are not ones we can address alone. We are working closely with the City of Bristol, charities such as the Samaritans, with mental health leads in Public Health England and the NHS, and leading academics in this field, and they have strongly endorsed the approach that we are taking.”

Mark Ames, director of student services, added: “We are developing a whole institution approach to supporting student mental health and wellbeing, and we need the views and ideas of the whole institution.

“Reflecting global mental health trends, we have experienced a 20% increase in the number of students registering with the student counselling service compared with the same period last year (2,739 students between August 2017 and March 2018), and an annual increase of 10% per annum over the last few years. In response, we have been expanding our services as rapidly as we can.”

Bristol recently invested an additional £1m in wellbeing services. Proposals to reduce live-in support in halls of residence had to be amended after an outcry from students and staff, but some concerns remain.

In the UK, the Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international suicide helplines can be found at www.befrienders.org.