A new strategy has been launched by the city council and primary care trust to reduce the suicide rate in Southampton. KATE THOMPSON talks to Jean Swallow about the death of her son...

IT'S BARELY a month since Jean Swallow's teenage son Jack took his own life. It appears that, in the middle of the night, the lovelorn young man threw himself into the chilly depths of the River Itchen and ended the torment that had taken over his life.

In the aftermath of his tragic death, the Bitterne Park home Jean shares with husband Rob and children Carly and Craig has become a focus of love and support.

Every available surface is covered in remembrance cards - each containing a loving message of sympathy and sadness.

A talented and creative boy, Jack's artwork folder is at the edge of the room - along with files containing more cards and kind words left at the makeshift memorial that appeared on the bridge in the aftermath of his death.

In the days since the discovery of 16-year-old Jack's body in the waters under Cobden Bridge, his mother has struggled to understand how a young man with everything to look forward to would plan to take his own life.

"He was a sensitive, deep- thinking boy - in fact he was probably too sensitive," she said.

"He was very talented with music and wrote a lot of his own songs.

"He was my baby boy and very much loved. In recent times he had become a little bit withdrawn but nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

"His sister, Carly, used to work late and when she came in each night he would run her a bath and after that they would talk.

"He had confided to her that he was unhappy but nobody realised how desperate he was," said Jean, who works as a supply nursery teacher.

Sadly, on the night he died, Jack had run Carly's bath as usual but she was so tired she did not stay up afterwards for their usual chat.

"Carly heard the front door go at about 1.30am but she was half asleep and it didn't really register with her.

"Jack was always a very heavy sleeper so to wake him up in the morning I would put on his MP3 player extremely loud.

"When I went in on that particular morning, I could see his bed hadn't been slept in and then I found the note and the drawing of the bridge.

"I knew straight away what he had done and where he would be found," she said.

In the eloquent letter he left for his family, Jack talked of the pain and despair he was experiencing.

"I want to fade away. I want to be alone. I want to stop inflicting trouble on people's lives ....

"Tonight I will die a nobody that no one ever knew or understood.

"This is my way of escape. My way of finally being alone."

Prior to his death, Jack had created a memory board of photographs in his room depicting happier times.

Speaking to his friends, Jean discovered he had shared morbid thoughts but no one believed he would take his life.

"He made an off-the-cuff comment to one person and said he wanted to die like a rock star.

"And he told others 'If I was going to kill myself I would drown'.

"The sad thing was that none of his friends were aware of how bad he was really feeling," she said.

The family has been left devastated by their loss and Jean hopes that by speaking out about his death, she may raise awareness of the issues surrounding suicide.

"I wouldn't want anyone to go through what we have had to experience - it is the worst nightmare.

"I had never seen a dead body before and seeing your own son like that is just awful.

"Since his death I have been absolutely hyper and I am just getting by on adrenalin.

"When Jack was 15, I took him on holiday to Guernsey - it was just the two of us and I wanted him to experience flying for the first time.

"We had a wonderful time and it is those memories that I will treasure forever," she said.

JEAN'S CAMPAIGN:

TO try to reduce the incidence of teen suicide, Jean is calling for "worry boxes" to be kept in schools and colleges.

"Young people would have the chance of drawing attention to their concerns without feeling like they are snitching on their friends," she said.

"The boxes would be emptied by a trusted member of staff who could deal with the concerns in a confidential manner."

Jean is also pressing for a 24-hour textline to be set up so young people can reach out in the wee small hours.

"A lot of young people are quite nocturnal and things can always seem worse in the middle of the night," she said.

"If they had somewhere that they trusted that they could send a text to, I think it would help."

No Limits - the organisation that helps teenagers with every aspect of entering the adult world - has just been awarded £60,000 for suicide prevention work, and Jean hopes that may fund the textline service.

"Following Jack's death we received a lot of donations and we think we will be donating about £1,500 to No Limits."