Suicide: looking at the numbers

SUICIDE IN AUSTRALIA

* Suicide numbers have reached the highest rate in more than 10 years

* In 2015 there were 3027 suicides - that's 8.3 in Australia every day

* About 76 per cent of victims were male

* Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are about twice as likely to die by suicide than non-indigenous people

* Between 2011 to 2015, the average number of suicides per year was 2687

* The highest suicide rate for men in 2015 was in the 85-plus age group and for women it was in the 45-49 age group

NSW SUICIDE RATES IN 2015

* 815 deaths, 621 were male and 194 were female

* NSW had the highest number of suicides, Queensland was next with 746 and then Victoria with 654

* NSW accounted for almost a third of all suicides in Australia

* The north coast of NSW is a suicide hotspot

- Figures from Mindframe and Lifeline

Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467.

MensLine Australia 1300 78 99 78.

Multicultural Mental Health Australia www.mmha.org.au.

Local Aboriginal Medical Service available from www.vibe.com.au.