“At present there is no mechanism for the ready transfer of a person in police custody…”
Dated 23 Mar 2020, from the coroner for Exeter and Greater Devon. Sent to 6 organisations or people.
A coroner wrote this report after an inquest, to warn the organisations below about a risk of further deaths.
The 56-day response deadline
Deadline passedReplies were due by 18 May 2020. A reply may have been sent and not yet published.
Organisations that receive a report must reply to the coroner within 56 days, saying what they will do or why they will do nothing. We show whether a response is published on judiciary.uk.
- Report dated23 Mar 2020
- Deadline18 May 2020
- Published on judiciary.uk9 Apr 2020
- Today23 Oct 2026
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Responses from each recipient
| Sent to | Response |
|---|---|
| Devon Partnership NHS Trust | Deadline passedNo response published on judiciary.uk so far. The 56-day deadline was 18 May 2020. A reply may have been sent and not yet published. |
| Devon and Cornwall Police | Deadline passedNo response published on judiciary.uk so far. The 56-day deadline was 18 May 2020. A reply may have been sent and not yet published. |
| Avon and Somerset Police | Response publishedPublished on judiciary.uk in April 2020. |
| Wiltshire Police | Response publishedPublished on judiciary.uk in April 2020. |
| Gloucestershire Police | Deadline passedNo response published on judiciary.uk so far. The 56-day deadline was 18 May 2020. A reply may have been sent and not yet published. |
| Prison and Probation service | Deadline passedNo response published on judiciary.uk so far. The 56-day deadline was 18 May 2020. A reply may have been sent and not yet published. |
The coroner’s concerns
(1) At present there is no mechanism for the ready transfer of a person in police custody within the police areas of Devon and cornwall, Avon and somerset, wiltshire and Gloucestershire from police custody to a medium secure mental health facility for assessment / treatment under sections 2 and 3 of the Mental Health Act 1983 where such a person is suspected of or charged with a serious crime. Such an arrangement exists in the west Midlands where a Memorandum of Understanding has been developed and agreed between relevant agencies. (2) Evidence at the inquest suggested that there was an insufficient understanding of the special needs and vulnerabilities of those prisoners who are within the autistic spectrum
An extract. Read the full report, including the circumstances of the death, on the Courts and Tribunals Judiciary website.
- Source
- judiciary.uk, Prevention of Future Deaths reports, 2020-0074
- Added to Minute Book
- 8 Oct 2026
- Reuse
- We show short extracts and link to the original. We don’t host the full report.
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Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: Courts and Tribunals Judiciary, judiciary.uk. Open Government Licence v3.0
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