Inquest into death of tragic teen Amber Peat moves forward

An inquest into the death of the Mansfield teenager who was found hanged in bushes near her home was opened and adjourned, pending a full investigation by police and other agencies’ in June 2015.

Dr Mairin Casey, senior coroner for Notts, spoke at the brief hearing held at Nottingham Council House on Friday (September 14).

The next hearing will be on October 17, a date for the inquest has not been fixed but is expected to be in January 2019.

The coroner said she had been assisted by the serious case review launched by the Nottinghamshire Safeguarding Children Board.

Documents for prior disclosure will be served on those with statutory duties regarding the case.

Thirteen-year-old Amber Peat went missing from her home, on Bosworth Street, on Saturday May 30 and her body was found three days later in bushes off Westfield Lane, less than a mile away.

Amber was reported missing from her Bosworth Street home on May 31 2015 after an argument over chores.

When she failed to come home her mother and step father took part in a televised appeal for her safe return.

Hundreds of volunteers from the community then took to the streets to help search for the Queen Elizabeth’s Academy pupil.

However, her body was discovered on the evening of Tuesday, June 2.

At the opening of the inquest, a pathologist’s report declared there was no evidence of natural diseases that contributed to her death’ and that an external examination found ligature marks around the neck, which the pathologist had said the cause of death was most likely hanging.

Police said there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding her death, there were concerns about the circumstance leading up to the fateful event.

A serious case review was subsequently launched by the Nottinghamshire Safeguarding Children Board.

Chris Few, chair of the Nottinghamshire Safeguarding Children Board said: “A serious case review has been completed and will be published once the inquest proceedings have been completed. Until then it would not be appropriate to comment on the circumstances of the tragic death.”

According to Government guidelines, a review is undertaken when a child dies and abuse or neglect are known or suspected to be factors in the death.

In the weeks following Amber’s death it became apparent that she had brought of attention of Derbyshire County Council as far back as 2014. The family had lived in Derbyshire before moving to Mansfield.

Documents obtained by the Chad in the weeks following her death confirmed her family was at the centre of a social services investigation.

There had been meetings between Nottinghamshire County Council and her parents in the wake of her death and Amber’s step father moved out of the family home at the time.

Amber biological father, who lives in Scotland, has since demanded answers as to whether Derbyshire County Council had passed on concerns about Amber’s welfare to their Nottinghamshire counterparts when the family moved to Mansfield.

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