Jury retires in boy's hospital death inquest

An inquest jury considering the death of a teenager who took his own life in a secure mental health unit has retired to consider its conclusions.

Charlie Millers died after self-harming at Junction 17, a specialist child mental health service at Prestwich Hospital run by Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Trust.

The jury heard the 17-year-old was admitted three times after a number of self-harm incidents.

Charlie was admitted to the Junction 17 ward for the final time on 20 October 2020, and had periods of home leave during the stay.

On 12 November, 2020, Charlie was taken to A&E after attempting to take his own life.

The inquest heard that when he returned to the ward he was supposed to observed once every five minutes, with one-to-one support when required.

The court heard Charlie made a number of similar attempts on his own life on the night of 2 December after returning from home leave.

He was taken to Salford Hospital where he died on 7 December.

The court heard that Charlie was a talented artist who loved Morris dancing, football and animals.

His family described him as "an amazing human" with a "smile that affected and melted away a thousand hearts".

In her summing up at Rochdale Coroners Court, Senior Coroner Joanne Kearsley reminded the jury of evidence about observations on the night Charlie died.

The jury had heard that staff knew he was at risk of self-harming when he returned to the ward after a period of leave at home.

The jury was asked to consider if Charlie and his mother, Samantha Millers, should have had more support from Trafford Borough Council, and if the teenager should have been on a child protection plan.

The members of the jury were also been asked to consider if the observations on Charlie were carried out and if communication between staff was robust enough.

At the beginning of the inquest, Ms Millers said she felt the support her son received “was a mess”.

Charlie was one of three people who died in less than a year at the Prestwich site.

The deaths of Rowan Thompson, 18, Ania Sohail, 21, and Charlie took place in a nine-month period between October 2020 and June 2021.

Charlie's inquest was adjourned in 2023 after police announced they had started a manslaughter investigation.

The investigation concluded in January with a decision not to prosecute.

Samantha previously told the court that Charlie, who was transgender, had been severely bullied after publicly identifying as a boy from the age of 12.

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