LETTER: A suicidal future for young people today

From Ms Joanna Foster

Sir: Your article (8 August) makes chilling reading for any parent of teenagers. We know instinctively that our ability and willingness to talk and listen to our children is crucial but are often at a loss to know how to do that.

Communication skills are the key. But effective communication does not always come easily or naturally. We all need to understand more about communicating and we need to learn how we can become better at it.

The BT Forum is supporting a major piece of research to look, for the first time, at how young people communicate. It will result in practical materials for families and schools to help bridge the communication gap.

Communication has to be at the top of the agenda here. The cost of ignoring it is obvious.

Yours sincerely,

Joanna Foster

Director, BT Forum

London, EC4

9 August