Two local newspapers and their website have been criticised by a press watchdog for publishing reports containing the specific method used by a teacher to commit suicide.

It is the first complaint adjudicated by the Press Complaints Commission under the expanded terms of the Editor’s Code of Practice, which now states that “when reporting suicide, care should be taken to avoid excessive detail about the method used”.

The change, made in 2006, was to minimise the risk of copycat suicides.

The Wigan Evening Post and the Wigan Observer, and their shared website, published an article that reported on an inquest into the suicide, including specific details of how he had electrocuted himself.

The man’s widow complained that a Wigan Evening Post report on May 25, headlined “Electrocuted”, and one in the Wigan Observer on May 29, “Teacher found electrocuted” contained excessive detail in breach of Clause 5 (Intrusion into grief or shock).

The articles reported on the inquest, with the complainant concerned that the reports were particularly irresponsible, and that children taught by her husband might be adversely affected by such reporting.

The newspapers claimed the reports were accurate but accepted that too much detail may have been included about the method of death and apologised sincerely for causing the complainant distress.

Although inquests are held in public and newspapers are free to report their proceedings, the Commission agreed that too much detail had been included.

The Code of Practice sets out standards over and above the legal framework – and the papers should have been less specific about the method used.

The Commission said in its adjudication: “By going into such detail, there was a danger that sufficient information was included to spell out to others how to carry out such a suicide.

“The breach of the Code in this case was an opportunity for the Commission to underline to all editors the importance of taking care over the reporting of suicide.”