As many of you will have seen today (Wednesday 9 December 2020) the BBC has published a story on its website about student mental health. This features William Bargate, who was an undergraduate student in WBS who sadly died in October. We expect there to be further coverage of this story on BBC news this afternoon, ahead of a BBC Three documentary on 15 December.

The media coverage is likely to be very distressing for members of our community who knew Will. We wanted to give you prior knowledge about the coverage, and to reassure you that there is support available to you if you are affected by this.

Following Will’s death, Andy Lockett, Dean of WBS, and other members of the School, have been in contact with Will’s father, Mr Bargate, and assured him that we would look to see what lessons could be learned. We will also consider any views or comments that the coroner may express.

Stuart Croft, Vice-Chancellor, says:

“We are deeply saddened by Will’s death, and offer our sincere sympathies to Will’s family and friends, as well as to other members of our community affected by his death. We are providing wellbeing support to those who have been affected by these issues and urge you to use this support over the vacation period, whether you are on campus or away.

We have strong links with local and national partners from the healthcare sector, voluntary sector and local authorities through the Coventry Suicide Prevention Group and will work in partnership with them to continue to try to improve how we support all members of the Warwick community on mental health and wellbeing issues in light of this tragic case.”

Support available to you

Students can contact the Wellbeing Support Services team via the Wellbeing Portal, or by calling 024 7657 5570.

Bereavement support from the Chaplaincy is also available to all staff and students.