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Motive behind tragic suicide ‘remains unclear’, says Coroner

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Unit where Laura Hill had been treated

Unit where Laura Hill had been treated

THE REASON why 21-year-old Laura Hill took her own life ‘remains unclear’, the deputy coroner for Pembrokeshire has ruled. 

The body of Laura Hill, 21, from Neyland, was found by members of the public on 17 December, 2012.

At the inquest on Friday (Feb 20), Deputy Coroner Gareth Lewis said: “Miss Hill suspended herself from the branch of a tree in a wooden area near to Withybush Hospital, but the question of intent remains unclear”.

Tragic : Laura Hill

Tragic : Laura Hill

Earlier in 2012, Miss Hill, who was from Neyland, had suffered the loss of her baby son and she had struggled to come to terms with this.

She had been admitted to Withybush Hospital on December 11, after taking an overdose of prescription tablets and she was later transferred to Bro Cerwyn Hospital.

However, on the night of December 16, Laura absconded and she was found hanged the following morning by members of the public.

Among his findings, the deputy coroner highlighted evidence from a psychiatrist, Dr Shubulade Smith, who said that Miss Hill was suffering from Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder (EUPD).

Reading out the facts of the case, Gareth Lewis said: “On December 11, 2012, Miss Hill was admitted to Withybush General Hospital after taking a large overdose of prescription tablets.

“Miss Hill remained as an inpatient at the Hospital until December 15, at which point she was transferred to Bro Cerwyn Hospital.

“On arrival at the hospital it was felt that she would benefit from admission in view of her depression, substance misuse, unresolved bereavement issues and her recent suicide attempt.

“Dr Athithan described her as having a varied suicide risk and placed her on level two 15 observations. She was described as bright, jovial and interacted well with others.

“At 19:15, Miss Hill asked to leave the ward in order to source some heroin. Staff on the ward tried to dissuade Miss Hill from leaving but she was adamant that she wanted to leave and she discharged herself against medical advice.

“In the early of hours of December 16, 2012, police had cause to carry out a welfare check in relation to Miss Hill. Officers were concerned that Miss Hill presented a danger to herself and detained her under section 136 of the Mental Health Act.

“Miss Hill was readmitted to the ward at 02.29hrs on December 16. On arrival she was assessed by Dr Athithan as being emotional, in a distressed state, sobbing and tearful. He suggested that if she tried to leave the ward they should use their holding powers under the Mental Health Act.

“At 14:45 on December 16, Miss Hill walked out of the ward and left the grounds of the hospital. Miss Hill was followed by two members of staff who persuaded her to return to the ward.

“Shortly after taking her medication at 18:15, Miss Hill absconded from the ward again and could not be located. Police were alerted to this and an immediate search was undertaken.

“Miss Hill’s body was found by members of the public at approximately 07:55 on December 17, 2012. She was suspended from a branch of tree with a blue nylon rope around her neck. The cause of death from a post mortem examination was found to be hanging.

“My findings are as follows: The decision to allow Miss Hill to leave the ward on December 15 against medical advice was probably right even if undesirable in the circumstances.

“When Miss Hill was returned to the ward by police there was a significant breakdown in the exchange of information under the section 136 handing over process.

“There was a failure to report Miss Hill’s attempt to abscond at 14:45 on December 16 to Dr Athithan despite his recommendation that if Miss Hill tried to abscond, consideration needed to be given to the use of holding powers. There was a clear lack of appreciation amongst the staff on the ward as to the meaning of the word abscond and because Miss Hill came back to the ward this was not perceived to be an attempt to abscond.

“Miss Hill’s mental state should have been, but was not, reviewed when she returned to the ward after absconding.

“The staff failed to appreciate that level two 15 observations were clearly insufficient to prevent Miss Hill leaving the ward. Miss Hill was only seen to be leaving the ward by fellow patients.

“There needed to be a system to monitor access and egress from the ward. Dr Smith commented during his evidence: ‘You cannot just let people come and go as they please, there needs to be someone in control of the door’, if this was in place it would have been considerably more difficult  for Miss Hill to have absconded from the ward.

“Staffing levels at the ward were such that it would have been difficult to put Miss Hill on level 3 even if this had been considered appropriate.

“There was a lack of joined up thinking between the members of the mental health teams working with Miss Hill. Dr Smith felt that the mental health teams never looked behind Miss Hill’s substance misuse. Dr Smith commented in his evidence that ‘undoubtedly, Miss Hill was suffering from Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder’.

“One of the main features of EUPD is a tendency to act impulsively without consideration of the consequences. In her evidence she stated that it was very difficult to say whether she intended to kill herself.

At the end of the inquest Mr Lewis added that he would be exercising his powers under regulation 28 to send the report to prevent future deaths to the Hywel Dda Health Board and Welsh Government’s Improving Patient Safety team. He highlighted that his letter would surround training needs, lack of policy regarding access and egress and staffing ratios.

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Rugby Weekly – Tenby’s promotion push continues

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It’s crunch time for all rugby clubs around the county, whether promotion is their aim or fighting relegation or even just trying to improve their league position, it’s now or never. 

Last weekend saw an important win for Fishguard in division two west which should put any relegation fears to bed completely. James Griffiths added an impressive 18 points for the Seagulls as they defeated Nantgaredig 33-19. 

Elsewhere in the second division, Milford were beaten 32-8 by a good Lampeter outfit. The Mariners are still a little too close for comfort with the drop zone but should have enough quality to see them safe. 

At the other end of the table Tenby sit in second place and have played fewer games than leaders St Clears and third place Lampeter. They won impressively again last weekend, beating Pontyberem 64-19 at Haywood Lane. Fletcher Broadhurst impressed with two tries as did Hywel Baker who also grabbed himself a brace. Another excellent performance in an outstanding season so far in which promotion would be the absolute icing on the cake. 

In Division Three West, Pembroke were well beaten by Laugharne 74-15 in which the outstanding Liam Price and Nico Setaro both crossed the whitewash 4 teams a piece. The latter also added 7 successful conversions. 

There was a local derby at Pill Parks where Llangwm hosted Pembroke Dock Quins and it was an exciting clash. The visitors won narrowly 28-23, Craig Barnett and Gethin Bradney both scored two tries for the Quins. The Wasps battled hard and will be proud of their performance, Gethin Thomas impressed for the hosts with two tries of his own but it wasn’t enough to secure the points. 

St David’s hosted the high flying Cardigan outfit and were unable to score in reply to the visitors 20 points, with it ending 20-0. The Saints however won’t be losing too much sleep over it as they have had a great season so far. 

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Stephen Crabb leads inquiry on retaining community bank services  

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PRESELI Pembrokeshire MP, and Chair of the Welsh Affairs Select Committee Stephen Crabb is leading an inquiry in Parliament that will investigate the closure of high street banks in Wales, as well as access to cash.

In November 2023, Pembrokeshire saw the closure of Lloyds Bank in St Davids, and in the coming months both Barclays Bank and Halifax in Haverfordwest are set to close. In recent years, Wales has experienced a rapid decline in the number of high street banking services available to the public. Already in 2024, 23 high street bank closures have been announced in Wales, while automated teller machines (ATMs) declined by nearly a quarter between 2018 and 2023.

The Committee willconsider how declining high street banking services are impacting vulnerable people and small businesses across Wales, who are often more reliant on cash than digital banking. It will also examine how Wales is being affected by the loss of high street bank services, and whether the problem is worse in Wales than other parts of the UK.

Mr Crabb is a staunch advocate for retaining community banking facilities, especially in rural communities like Pembrokeshire where many local branches remain the only source of face-to-face banking provision for miles.

Recently Mr Crabb challenged Barclays Bank senior management on their decision to close the bank branch in Haverfordwest– a move that will see Barclays not only pull out of the county town, but means they won’t have a branch left anywhere in Pembrokeshire. He has also engaged with LINK – the UK’s largest cash machine network – and continues to campaign on the basis that a Banking Hub is established and that ATM machines should be retained or installed, especially in areas worst affected by the closures.  

Following the launch of the inquiry, MP Crabb added: “It is really sad to see so many banks across Wales closing as online banking grows in popularity. Despite the advantages of online banking, for a rural community with an ageing population like Pembrokeshire, bank branches hold huge importance as they offer face-to-face customer service.”

“I am acutely aware of the inconvenience that the bank closures locally have already caused following hundreds of replies from constituents to my ‘online banking survey’ ”

“I am looking forward to gathering further evidence on this subject through the committee’s inquiry, and will continue to put pressure on the relevant stakeholders to ensure that adequate alternative provisions are made through the establishment of banking hubs as well as the instalment of ATM machines where necessary.”

“In this inquiry, we are particularly keen to hear from those likely to be directly affected by the shift away from cash and physical banks. I encourage anyone with first-hand experience of losing banking services to give evidence to the Committee”

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Trains resume between Carmarthen and Pembroke Dock as works end

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TRAIN services resumed this morning (Thursday 28 March) after ten days of essential round-the-clock work to upgrade track and drainage between Carmarthen and Pembroke Dock.

The railway was closed from Monday 18 March to Wednesday 27 March to allow Network Rail teams to replace more than 200 metres of track and 300 tonnes of ballast (track stones) between Pembroke station and Pembroke Dock.

Work to improve the drainage between Narbeth and Kilgetty stations was also completed at the same time.

Nick Millington, Network Rail Wales and Borders route director, said: “This essential work in Pembrokeshire demonstrates our commitment to improving the reliability of the service we provide to passengers along our route.

“We know that replacing the track can be disruptive and very noisy, so I would like to thank the residents of Pembroke for their patience while our team carried out this crucial work.”

Colin Lea, Planning and Performance Director at Transport for Wales said: “We’re pleased that our colleagues in Network Rail have completed this essential work and that Transport for Wales rail services resumed today.

“We’d like to thank passengers for their patience while this work has progressed and look forward to welcoming passengers back in time for the Easter weekend.”

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