Inner North London
Coroner Area
Reports: 331
Earliest: Sep 2013
Latest: 11 Mar 2026
81% response rate (above 63% average).
Anthony Grant
All Responded
2017-0410
16 Nov 2017
Royal Life Saving Society UK
Other related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
A lifeguard failed to notice a submerged swimmer for over five minutes due to inadequate pool safety protocols, including insufficient staffing and static positioning. The coroner suggests using the CCTV footage as a national training tool to improve vigilance.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
RLSS UK will raise swimming pool safety matters at the CIMSPA annual conference, which will host the launch of the HSE's revised guidance, Managing Health and Safety in Swimming Pools (HSG 179). The RLSS UK, CIMSPA and ukactive are committed to providing a summary of the changes and reminders about lifeguard vigilance.
Bronwyn Williams
All Responded
2017-0215
13 Sep 2017
Homerton University Hospital NHS Trust
Kindandental
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
An urgent dental referral was sent by slow postal service, and the subsequent maxillofacial appointment was significantly delayed for nearly seven weeks due to cancellation and rescheduling.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
Homerton University Hospital is implementing electronic referrals via e-RS for GPs by April 2018. They are taking actions to mitigate risks related to dentists not being able to use the system, as they cannot fix the issues locally. Kindandental has applied for an NHS net email address and plans to use it for electronic referrals within two weeks of access and training. They also plan to build functionality into their system to send referrals via other email services with patient consent, and reviewed/updated their referral pathways and associated checklist to ensure thorough referral processes, emphasizing verification of patient details.
Jonathan Meaney
All Responded
2017-0244
24 Aug 2017
Camden and Islington NHS Trust
Royal Free London NHS Trust
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Prolonged waiting for a mental health bed and a flawed discharge assessment, where overdose intent was not adequately addressed, resulted in the patient's premature release without proper consultation or confirmed follow-up care.
Noted
(AI summary)
The Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust notes that the concerns relate to Camden & Islington NHS Foundation Trust (CANDI)'s Mental Health Liaison service, and that CANDI is undertaking a Serious Incident investigation. They have asked to be provided with copies of CANDI's Serious Incident investigation report and response to the Prevention of Future Deaths Report. Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust outlines several actions taken and planned: Clinicians involved have been prevented from working at this level of expertise until the SIR review is complete. Any decision to change the original decision made by another full time clinician whereby they are de-escalating the outcome, must be discussed and agreed with a senior member of the team and this must be clearly recorded in the patients notes; All agency or bank staff who work regularly with the team will receive regular formal clinical supervision from the team manager in line with Trust employees and agency staff will receive the same access to Trust training as Trust staff. Referral letters to GPs will include an accompanying note to alert the GP to any specific action they need to carry out.
Fallon Abby
All Responded
2017-0288
8 Aug 2017
East London NHS Trust
Community health care and emergency services related deaths
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Suicide (from 2015)
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Lack of a protocol for contacting social workers led to a failure in obtaining valuable collateral history and sharing crucial information, depriving the patient of support upon discharge.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
The Trust's safeguarding children training will include information about the Leaving Care Team, and bespoke training will be provided to ward managers and matrons for cascading to staff. The ward's operational policy will be reviewed to include contacting the Leaving Care Team upon admission of a young person previously in care, and staff will work with the young person to negotiate the involvement of their social worker.
Songul Bozdag
All Responded
2017-0219
26 Jul 2017
East London NHS Trust
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
The care co-ordinator failed to conduct mandatory patient reviews, maintain accurate records, and update medication dosages, leading to under-medication, with no systemic safety net.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
The Trust has implemented an inbox-based system to communicate discharge care plans to CMHT staff, and monthly supervision for care coordinators is now working in line with Trust procedures. Regular audits are being undertaken to maintain a robust oversight on the process.
Nasar Ahmed
All Responded
2023-0134
12 May 2017
Department of Health and Social Care, L…
Child Death (from 2015)
Other related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
A school nurse's inadequate medication review process included using an incorrect allergy action plan, not verifying medication in school, and failing to ensure updated, in-date medication.
Disputed
(AI summary)
Bow School is improving medication management systems, ensuring robust monitoring, and supporting staff to provide effective interventions; the school will brief staff on medical policies and procedures (repeated September 2017), place awareness posters throughout the school, annotate menus with allergens (September 2017), raise awareness of medical needs via Anaphylaxis Campaign and PSHE curriculum, and offer first aid training to pupils (Year 9 in July 2017, all pupils next year). The Department of Health will not pursue making generic adrenaline auto-injectors available in public places due to safety concerns raised by the MHRA, but they are amending regulations to allow schools to hold spare auto-injectors without a prescription for emergencies, effective from 1 October 2017, and are developing guidance for school staff on their use. The London Ambulance Service (LAS) disputes the coroner's concern, stating that the Clinical Hub paramedic did not advise against using the EpiPen and that the call was appropriately managed and the LAS will take no action. BSACI has produced national guidelines for managing various allergies, promotes written personalized emergency management plans, and has been part of a campaign to allow schools to hold spare adrenaline auto-injectors, with revised regulations coming into effect on 1 October 2017, and is developing a website to support school staff. Compass Wellbeing has undertaken an internal investigation, reinforced accurate record keeping, provided medico-legal training on documentation, reviewed and reran training on their Competency Framework, and is implementing an electronic diary system with reminders for follow-up actions. Barts Health NHS Trust will implement an action plan, work with partners on the Asthma Friendly Schools Project, promote the Healthy London Partnership Paediatric asthma toolkit, improve knowledge of long-term conditions in childhood, and standardize asthma management across Tower Hamlets in line with London Paediatric Asthma standards. The practice discussed the case as a team, reviewed individual consultations, contacted the pharmacy, and contacted the safeguarding team and hospital respiratory team for learning; the nursing team will now post/email a copy of the asthma action plan to the child’s school health team or give a copy to parents to hand in, starting July 2017; the nursing team will investigate anaphylaxis care plans in secondary care and incorporate them into care plans by September 2017.
Jamie Elliott
All Responded
2017-0135
25 Apr 2017
East London NHS Foundation Trust
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Mental health clinicians failed to contact external providers when patients received treatment elsewhere. There was also a lack of timely, face-to-face consultant psychiatric assessments for patients with worsening conditions, despite identified concerns.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
The Trust distributed a memo to clinical staff in City and Hackney regarding contact with external providers. A policy has been updated to include referrals to the Home Treatment team where patients haven't been seen within 48 hours of referral, needing prioritization and potential consultant review.
Chadrack Mulo
All Responded
2017-0120
12 Apr 2017
Department for Education
Child Death (from 2015)
Other related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
School procedures for unexplained absences were inadequate, with limited emergency contacts and delayed responses to non-attendance, revealing a need for wider adoption of immediate welfare checks.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
The Department for Education will update the 'Keeping Children Safe in Education' and 'School Attendance' guidance to recommend schools hold multiple contact numbers and clarify the link between attendance and welfare issues. Changes will be made at the earliest opportunity, subject to formal consultation on the safeguarding guidance.
Michael Brennan
All Responded
2017-0114
27 Mar 2017
University College London Hospitals NHS…
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
A critical backup plan for emergency patient transfer failed due to unavailability of a satellite hospital bed, highlighting a lack of real-time bed status information for clinicians across the Trust's multiple sites.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
UCLH will revise its bed management policy by the end of May 2017 to reflect twice-daily bed state updates from Westmoreland Street Hospital. It is also implementing an electronic coordination centre in November 2017 to improve bed capacity management.
Mariana Pinto
All Responded
2017-0093
14 Mar 2017
East London NHS Trust
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
The emergency department failed to effectively communicate illness progression and crisis team limitations to the family. The crisis line nurse did not escalate an urgent situation or prompt emergency services involvement.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
East London NHS Foundation Trust is developing a written discharge care plan to clarify the limitations of the Home Treatment Team, and will increase flexibility to bring forward visits for service users experiencing deterioration in their mental health between scheduled visits from October 2017. From October 2017, the service will be reconfigured to provide the availability for 24 hour face to face contact if required and an enhanced urgent response service. Following a serious incident review, the Trust updated its Operational Policy for CMHT, mandating that opt-in letters be sent within 5 working days, and will conduct local audits to ensure compliance.
Doreen Stapleton
All Responded
2017-0043
24 Feb 2017
Whittington Hospital NHS Trust
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
An obsolete email address caused a critical district nursing referral to fail upon discharge, compounded by inadequate, explicit communication to a vulnerable patient and family about the fatal risks of missed medication and follow-up contact.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
The organisation has written to doctors, nurses and pharmacists highlighting learning points. They raised the issues at the Medical Committee and reintroduced patient leaflets about pulmonary emboli on inpatient wards, with spot audits to ensure they are in place.
Emily Voukelatou
All Responded
2017-0004
11 Jan 2017
Camden and Islington NHS Trust
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
The crisis team routinely failed to involve family in patient care, leading to lost input. Repeated unreturned calls from worried relatives also indicated poor communication and information handling within the service.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
The Trust stresses the importance of family input and states it is routinely assessed, with patient consent, throughout the care pathway. The trust issued guidance to staff at North Camden Crisis House to ensure that numbers and contact details are clearly provided to families.
Lita Serkes
All Responded
2016-0458
16 Dec 2016
Royal London Hospital
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Multiple clinical failures occurred, including inaccurate medical records, delayed stroke diagnosis, critical delays in patient transfer to specialist care, and unreviewed crucial blood test results impacting treatment decisions.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
Barts Health NHS Trust has briefed medical staff on complete record-keeping, reiterated the availability of point-of-care tests, and is giving ongoing training to nursing staff in the use of PCA machines; a surgeon has been instructed to reflect on the incident at their next appraisal.
Ellen Kelly
All Responded
2016-0451
12 Dec 2016
London Borough of Camden
Community health care and emergency services related deaths
Other related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Residential fire safety is compromised by flat front doors lacking self-closing mechanisms and failing to meet 30-minute fire resistance standards, leading to rapid fire spread and trapping residents.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
The London Borough of Camden has a programme to improve fire safety in council housing, including regular meetings with the Fire Service, fire safety works to 4,500 high priority housing properties already completed. The work is comprehensive and includes renewal or upgrading flat entrance doors to FD3Os standard, signage, emergency lighting installations and fire stopping. Fire safety works have been prioritized for Kilburn Gate and have been tendered which includes installing new FD3Os flat entrance doors incorporating door closers, renewal of communal intake doors and redecoration of communal areas to Class 0 fire resistant standard. The council promotes fire safety through their Newsletter and website and has provided fire safety awareness training to estate services and other housing staff.
Margaret Tuck
All Responded
2016-0273
26 Jul 2016
Royal London Hospital
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Multiple failures included an absent falls prevention care plan, incomplete post-fall observations, confusion over nurse responsibility, and delayed investigation of confusion, contributing to undetected deterioration.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
Barts Health NHS Trust has re-instructed staff on falls risk assessments and care plans, clarified nursing responsibilities, reinforced post-falls procedures, and implemented measures to improve communication between medical teams. They have also addressed Datix reporting procedures for agency nurses.
Henry Hicks
All Responded
2016-0244
4 Jul 2016
Metropolitan Police
Police related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Police officers failed to identify a situation as a pursuit and seek authorisation, contrary to the jury's determination, implying non-compliance with the Metropolitan Police Service's standard operating procedure.
Noted
(AI summary)
The Metropolitan Police states that the existing pursuit policy remains unchanged but will be fully explored in the context of a formal disciplinary process for the officers involved, and notes that their guidance is kept under constant review and revision.
Patricia Steer
All Responded
2016-0201
25 May 2016
NHS England
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Nursing staff performing catheter changes were unaware of the risk of air embolization from uncapped/unclamped catheters, and there was a lack of accessible guidance on this critical safety point.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
NHS England clarifies that responsibility for the National Patient Safety Alerting System has transferred to NHS Improvement. It then refers to previous safety alerts and guidance related to central line risks, including resources on preventing air embolisms.
William Thompson
All Responded
2016-0130
30 Apr 2016
London Borough of Hackney
Community health care and emergency services related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
A high-risk service user lacked a smoke detector in his bedroom; social workers failed to assess or address this significant fire safety risk.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
The Hackney Safeguarding Adults Board commissioned a Safeguarding Adults Review under the provisions of the Care Act 2014, which has twenty six recommendations for improving practice and procedures across all of the partners and agencies involved with the case. Other measures have also been implemented, some in relation specifically to practice in the Council and others with partners to prevent as far as is possible further deaths in similar situations.
Marina Fagan
All Responded
2016-0162
22 Apr 2016
Department of Health and Social Care
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
A nationwide shortage of neurologists leads to significant delays in accessing specialist care, including long outpatient waiting times and lack of out-of-hours neurological expertise in some hospitals.
Noted
(AI summary)
The Department of Health acknowledges the concerns about the availability of neurologists and waiting times, noting that it is the responsibility of providers to ensure appropriate staffing levels, and that Health Education England (HEE) plans the future workforce and has invested in training places in neurology. They state that national waiting time standards are being met.
Brenda Morris
All Responded
2016-0065
19 Feb 2016
East London NHS Foundation Trust
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Suicide (from 2015)
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Lack of communication with the partner regarding leave conditions and no routine family feedback were identified. There was also confusion about doctor authorisation for unplanned leave and substandard documentation.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
The Trust has developed an 'In-patient leave agreement' and an 'In-patient leave checklist' to be completed before a patient goes on leave, with a pilot on older persons wards aiming for full introduction by the end of the month and quarterly audits starting in July 2016.
Faiza Ahmed
All Responded
2016-0600
20 Jan 2016
Department for Work and Pensions
London Ambulance Service NHS Trust
Metropolitan Police
Emergency services related deaths (2019 onwards)
Mental Health related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
No specific concerns are detailed in the provided text, which refers only to the jury's determination.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
The DWP believes its processes were followed correctly but will issue a reminder to all staff about guidance related to suicidal ideation. Following the incident, the involved crew undertook Reflective Learning, and a Clinical Update reinforcing the assessment of Capacity was published. A new Operational Management Structure was implemented, including Stakeholder Engagement Manager and Quality Assurance & Governance Manager roles, as well as funding for Mental Health Nurses in the control room. The Metropolitan Police will ensure that the future structure and resourcing model of Sapphire teams meets the demands of increased reporting levels and promotes a supportive working environment, and invest in training for first responders and investigators.
Matthew Groom
All Responded
2015-0503
12 Nov 2015
Camden & Islington NHS Trust
Whittington Hospital NHS Trust
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Significant delays occurred in mental health assessment and prescribed medication administration. Staff failed to plan for patient elopement, did not involve hospital security, and inadequately communicated the patient's detention need to police.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
The Trusts strengthened the mental health referral protocol from Whittington ED triage and added a new black phone in Whittington Health ED specifically for the police to pre-alert them to patients who are being brought to WH ED under Section 136 of the Mental Health Act, also creating a new Standard Operating Procedure. The Trusts strengthened the mental health referral protocol from Whittington ED triage and added a new black phone in Whittington Health ED specifically for the police to pre-alert them to patients who are being brought to WH ED under Section 136 of the Mental Health Act, also creating a new Standard Operating Procedure.
David White
All Responded
2015-0437
11 Nov 2015
Barts Health NHS Trust
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Critical medication side effects causing confusion were unrecorded and unaddressed. Despite documented fall risks in nursing notes, adequate supervision was absent, and these notes were not reviewed or acted upon.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
Staff have been reminded of the importance of documenting allergies and adverse effects, including in Renal Mortality and Morbidity meetings; the safety briefing during nursing handover will now include care plans for patients at risk of falls, daily auditing of nursing documentation will be carried out, and Multidisciplinary Team meetings on Ward 9F have been changed to earlier in the day.
Richard Laco
All Responded
2015-0411
22 Oct 2015
CMF Limited
Laing O’Rourke UK & Europe
Accident at Work and Health and Safety related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
Critical construction method variations were undocumented in safety plans, and key personnel lacked understanding of procedures, leading to significant workplace safety risks.
Action Planned
(AI summary)
CMF Ltd will ensure lifting operations are planned by a qualified appointed person, use their native lift plan procedure, submit plans to the Principal Contractor for approval, explain plans to the lift team, and re-brief the team if the lift supervisor is absent or the plan is in force for more than 90 days; lifting will cease if conditions change. Laing O'Rourke issued a Safety Alert requiring sign-off by their Appointed Person for Lifting on all contractor lift plans and requires project teams to review high-risk activities monthly with 'Planned vs Actual' assessments.
Vasilis Ktorakis
All Responded
2015-0377
19 Oct 2015
Whittington Hospital NHS Trust
Child Death (from 2015)
Hospital Death (Clinical Procedures and medical management) related deaths
Concerns summary (AI summary)
The report identifies errors in care, including a delay in starting Syntocinon, inadequate recording of a management plan, an error of judgement in allowing passive descent, and a systemic issue in learning from incidents.
Action Taken
(AI summary)
The response details multiple actions already completed including educational supervision for the registrar involved, sharing learning points via newsletters and meetings, and implementing a meeting at the start of every maternity serious incident investigation. Planned actions include multidisciplinary meetings, feedback to staff, and communication from the Medical Director regarding record keeping.