The life and death of Jen Bridges-Chalkley: why did a 17-year-old die waiting for NHS therapy?

Jen killed herself after enduring a long wait for the necessary mental health support. Why were so many opportunities missed to save her?

When Sharren Bridges talks about her daughter’s last summer, in 2021, she chokes up and has to pause. In some ways, it was a good summer. Jen Bridges-Chalkley had a boyfriend and, like most parents of teenagers, Sharren would occasionally act as a taxi driver, taking them down to the local river to swim. “She spent time with her best friends and her godmother,” says Sharren. “And, looking back, she insisted on taking photographs with them and stuff like that.”

I am at Sharren’s house in Great Bookham in Surrey. We are sitting in the garden with the chickens and a couple of cockerels that haven’t yet learned the correct time of day to do their thing. Sharren works in the office of a homeless shelter and volunteers for Scouts and Guides; before that, she was a teaching assistant. Her mum, Chris – Jen’s grandma – brings out some tea.

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