Why we are calling for a statutory public inquiry.

Families and Survivors to Prevent Online Suicide Harms (FS POSH) is a coalition of bereaved families and survivors. We are asking the Government to set up a statutory public inquiry under section 1 of the Inquiries Act 2005 into six years of cross-departmental failure to act on the online forum and substance behind a known UK suicide route.

What has happened

At least 135 people in the United Kingdom, most of them under 25, are known to have died after engaging with one online forum and ingesting a substance bought online.
Since 2019, coroners have raised concerns with Government departments at least 65 times about the forum or the substance. Around 30 Prevention of Future Death reports name the forum; at least 65 name the substance.
In April 2025, Ofcom opened its first ever Online Safety Act investigation into the forum. On 13 May 2026 the regulator announced a £950,000 fine, and made clear that this is the full extent of its powers under the Act in this case. The forum remains operational.
On 16 October 2025, solicitors Leigh Day wrote to the Prime Minister and three Secretaries of State on behalf of seven bereaved families and supporting organisations, requesting a statutory public inquiry. On 25 March 2026, the Government refused.

Why only a statutory public inquiry will do

Inquests can only consider individual deaths. They cannot examine the wider regulatory framework, look across departments, or make recommendations for system-level change. The 65 coroner warnings issued since 2019 are the proof: each one is an individual finding, and the pattern they form has not been acted on.

Ofcom can act on a single platform under a single Act. It cannot examine the supply of the substance, the absence of any published output from the Concerning Methods Working Group, or the way Government departments have, in the Government's own words, taken a cautious approach to publicly releasing details about action being taken.

Only a statutory public inquiry, under section 1 of the Inquiries Act 2005, has the power to call evidence from across Government, examine why so many chances were missed, and make binding recommendations.

The three reasons the Government has given, and why they do not hold

On speed: The Government argued an inquiry would be not sufficiently quick or responsive. Ofcom's own investigation took eleven months to reach a provisional decision, and the forum remains operational. A focused inquiry, modelled on Volume 1 of the Manchester Arena Inquiry, could be faster than the regulatory route has so far proved to be.
On contagion: The Government cited the WHO media-reporting guidelines. Those guidelines address uncontrolled journalistic reporting. They do not address statutory inquiry processes operating under the chair's directions, reporting restrictions and Samaritans-compliant publication protocols. An inquiry conducted under proper safeguards is not the same instrument as a news report.
On adequacy of existing measures: The 13 May Ofcom announcement is itself the clearest available evidence that the existing regulatory architecture, while welcome, cannot reach the full scope of the problem. The fine addresses one platform. It does not address the supply of the substance, the cross-departmental coordination failure since 2019, or the six-year failure to act on coroner warnings.

What we are asking for

We are asking the Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, the Home Secretary, and the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology to reverse the 25 March refusal and establish a statutory public inquiry under section 1 of the Inquiries Act 2005, with terms of reference covering the cross-departmental response since 2019 to the forum, the related substance, and the wider online suicide harm.

Who is behind the call

The inquiry request was made by solicitors Leigh Day on behalf of a group of bereaved families. All those who died were under the age of 25. Family names are withheld here pending each family's approval.

The call for an inquiry is supported by the Molly Rose Foundation, INQUEST, CALM (the Campaign Against Living Miserably), the Centre for Countering Digital Hate, and The Jordan Legacy.

How you can help

If you would like to help the coalition's work, or to fund it, please leave your details. We will be in touch when there is something concrete to do. If you are a journalist, the press page has the latest release and a media contact.

In line with Samaritans Media Guidelines, we do not name the forum, the substance, or methods. If you are struggling, Samaritans is free, day or night, on 116 123.