Further inquiries into homeless mother’s death

An inquest into the death of a 21-year-old mother in Hereford has been adjourned, to allow further evidence to be gathered into the circumstances.

Natasha Jade Ashby, known as Tasha, died on 7 August 2023 at Hereford county bus station after sleeping rough in a tent on the station’s car park.

At a hearing on Monday, Herefordshire’s assistant coroner Roland Wooderson said a post-mortem examination had revealed the cause of death to be heroin toxicity.

However, he accepted an application by Ms Ashby's family to adjourn a final hearing, in order to explore what action Herefordshire Council had taken to help her.

Counsel for the family, Ciara Bartlam, told the hearing at Hereford town hall the court did not have sufficient evidence to record a safe verdict.

Reviews into the death by Herefordshire’s safeguarding partnership and West Mercia Police had given her family serious concerns, she said, and had only been sent to the family a few days before the hearing.

Ms Bartlam said there was evidence the heroin may not have been self-injected.

“Another verdict, of unlawful killing, looms large over this,” she said, arguing an adjournment would allow time for West Mercia Police to seek formal statements from those who had seen the woman in the days leading up to her death.

Asked to comment by the assistant coroner, Det Insp Catherine Taylor told the hearing that while several individuals had spoken to the force’s investigation, they had been reluctant to provide written statements.

Without sufficient evidence of unlawful killing, she said it was difficult to compel people to do so.

Ms Bartlam also said the safeguarding review of Ms Ashby's death had led her family to question whether “systemic failings” at Herefordshire Council had played a role.

“She was a 21-year-old care leaver to whom the council owed a duty of responsibility.”

She said the family wanted to know why Ms Ashby had been homeless at the time of her death, and why she had not been supported by adult safeguarding teams.

Mr Wooderson agreed there was further evidence that could be obtained from agencies as to why she was sleeping rough at the time of her death.

“It seems to me that there is some force in Ms Bartlam’s argument,” he said.

“More investigation needs to be made to see what Herefordshire Council were doing.”

However, he thought it unlikely West Mercia Police would be able to obtain formal witness statements from individuals living in a “chaotic environment”.

“With the best will in the world, the police just aren’t going to be able to get them,” he said.

A date for the final hearing has not yet been set.

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