Grieving Mother Fights for Mental Health Education After Daughter's Tragic Suicide

In March 2024, 13-year-old Sophie tragically died by suicide at her family home near Dundee, Scotland. Her mother, Ruth Moss, was devastated by the loss, describing it as having her "heart smashed into a million little pieces."

Sophie had long battled mental health issues and self-harm, with her mother recounting heartbreaking moments of holding her as she cried, saying she didn't want to live. Despite Sophie's two previous suicide attempts, Moss says her concerns were not taken seriously enough by the local Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS). An inquiry later found that precautions that could have been taken by CAMHS "might realistically have resulted in the death being avoided."

Now, Moss is calling for urgent changes to the education system across the UK to ensure children are kept safe. She believes that better mental health education in schools, as well as improved funding for CAMHS, could have potentially saved her daughter's life. Moss is supporting a campaign to have suicide prevention taught in Scottish schools, just as the UK Government recently announced for schools in England.

The latest statistics show thousands of children are being referred to CAMHS every year, with 146 having waited more than a year for treatment as of June 2025. Moss says the waiting lists and quality of service must be addressed to truly combat this issue. She is determined to honor her daughter's memory by fighting for the changes that could have saved her.