LIGATURE CUTTERS FOR SUICIDE PREVENTION KIT

Those of us that support people who attempt to take their lives by ligature never know what type of ligature material they may use. In order to be able to successfully cut them free, we need to have a variety of ligature cutters in the suicide prevention kit (rescue from ligature kit).

  1. With hanging, the hanging ligature will first need to be cut and then once the person is on a flat surface, if the ligature around the neck is causing harm, it too will need to be cut.
  2. With strangulation, the ligature will only be around the neck and therefore the ligature cutter will need to be able to get underneath the ligature material (between the neck and the ligature) in order to cut it free. 

Each type of cutter will contain the information that you need for that particular cutter (price @ 2024), where to buy it, what to use it for and how often each cutter can be used).

    Approximate price of the cutters below £35-00 – £72-00

    Approximate cost of cutters below £35-00 – £99-00

    a. Price guide (Hook Cutter):

    The cheapest I found in Feb 2024 was around £35 and most expensive £99. Add VAT and shipping.

    b. Where to buy it:

    I have listed potential suppliers at the end of this document. The list is not exhaustive.

    c. What materials the hook is useful for:

    The hook cutter is the most versatile of all the ligature cutters as it can cut most materials and because of the large hook. It can get around thicker items such as sheets, towels, all types of clothing, belts and very thick rope.

    d. How often it can be used:

    As ligature cutters are emergency life saving tools, they can only be used once and must then be sharpened. You can send the cutter away for sharpening to the supplier that you bought the cutter from, or you can buy a sharpener and sharpen the cutter after each use. (please ensure that you follow the manufacturer’s instructions).

    £5-00 -£8-00 with replacement blade

    £7-00 – £15-00 with retractable hook – the retractable hook can be used for very tight ligatures around the neck

    £7-00 – £15-00 with retractable hook – the retractable hook can be used for very tight ligatures around the neck

    This ligature cutter has tamper proof screws, so that the blade cannot be accessed. In very high-risk areas, it may be better to get this model rather than the model with the replaceable blades.
      Miniature ligature cutter Key ring or looped on belt.
      This is useful for clients/patients/service users that frequently self-harm.

      a. Price guide (Big Fish or Shark Cutter)

      Anywhere from £5 – £15

      b. Where to buy it:

      These can be bought from Amazon or from the larger ligature cutter suppliers – see list at the end of this document.

      c. What materials the hook is useful for:

      These cutters are very easy to use but are only suitable for thinner ligatures as the opening is narrow (an adult finger cannot fit into the opening). Shoelaces, hoodie strings, track suit trouser strings, ladies’ underwear (bras & nickers), bin liners, cling wrap, string, etc.

      This cutter can also only be used once. If the ligature cutter comes with spare blades, they must be replaced each time the cutter is used or if the cutter has tamper proof screws and cannot be opened, it should be discarded or placed in the practice ligature kit for staff to utilise when doing drills

      This used to be the recommended wire cutter, but as can be seen in the pictures above – the maximum size of wire it is able to cut is 1.5mm due to the narrow opening.

      I now recommend this model of cable cutter – as you can see, it can cut the narrowest wire as well as larger cables such as the extension cord cable seen in the picture on the right.

      a. Price guide:

      Anywhere from £8 to £25.

      b. Where to buy it:

      Amazon or any hardware store.

      c. What materials the hook is useful for:

      From thin wire to very thick cable.

      d. How often it can be used:

      These tools are very hardy and can be used long term.

      a. Price guide (Tough Cut Scissors):

      From £3.99 for the cheaper quality (on the left) all the way up to £30.00 for the trauma shears on the right. 

      b. Where to buy them:

      From Amazon or medical & surgical suppliers

      c. What materials the tuff cut scissors are useful for:

      Thin clothing or materials (bandages, scarves, soft material belts), seat belts, medical tubing, etc. If the material is very tight against the neck, it may be too difficult to get the scissors between the neck and the ligature

      d. How often can they be used:

      These too can only be used once. You can however use them as a ligature cutter and then put them into your first aid box or into the practice kit. You cannot however trust that the tuff cut scissors in your first aid box or on the dressing trolley will be sharp enough to use as an emergency life saving tool.

      Bum bag – it is not the brand that is being promoted but rather the design. The top pouch has a bright red tag to open the zip and all 4 of your ligature cutters should fit easily into this pocket and you should be able to get them out easily and quickly

      The front pouch can be used for Naloxone. This type of bag is useful for probation services and drug rehabilitation services. Where the Support Worker wears the bag for welfare checks.

      Approx £17-20.
      I particularly like this grab bag for services where the ligature kit will be kept in the office (mental health facilities, secure children’s units, behavioural units, etc.) as the ligature cutters can be easily identified and the pouch is opened via a Velcro flap.

      Cheaper grab bags, but take longer to open with the zip and the cheaper plastic.

      Suppliers are alphabetically listed as we as an organisation do not recommend any specific brand or provider of ligature cutters.

      1. Barrington International www.barringtoninternational.co.uk
      2. Niton 999 Equipment https://www.niton999.co.uk/catalogsearch/result/?q=ligature+cutters
      3. The medical warehouse www.medicalwarehouse.co.uk
      4. www.Speedsmedical.co.uk    
      5. EVAQ8 www.evaq8.co.uk  
      6. MAC-Coltellerie www.mac-coltellerie.it  rescue cutter
      7. Anti-ligature-shop.co.uk www.anti-ligature-ship.co.uk

      Risk assessment, policy/procedure/process development, training, evaluation or audit of the management ligature management system.