Prevention of Future Deaths reports · 2015

Keri Holdsworth

Regulation 28 report to prevent future deaths, reference 2015-0060, written 18 Feb 2015. A coroner writes one of these when an inquest reveals a risk that could cause further deaths unless something changes.

Date of report18 Feb 2015
Reference2015-0060
DeceasedKeri Holdsworth
CoronerC W M Donnelly
Coroner areaHartlepool
CategoryRoad (Highways Safety) related deaths
Sourcejudiciary.uk record · original PDF
Responses published2

The report

Text recovered by OCR from a scanned PDF. OCR is imperfect: check anything you rely on against the source PDF. Reproduced verbatim, including the scan's own layout.

REGULATION 28: REPORT TO PREVENT FUTURE DEATHS (1)

NOTE: This form is to be used after an inquest.

REGULATION 28 REPORT TO PREVENT FUTURE DEATHS
THIS REPORT IS BEING SENT TO:

1. Highways Agency
2. Hartlepool Borough Council

1 | CORONER

| am C.W.M.Donnelly, senior coroner for the coroner area of Hartlepool, & assistant
coroner for the area of Teesside

2 | CORONER’S LEGAL POWERS

| make this report under paragraph 7, Schedule 5, of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009
and regulations 28 and 29 of the Coroners (Investigations) Regulations 2013.

3 | INVESTIGATION and INQUEST

On 14" June 2014 | commenced an investigation into the death of Keri Victoria
Holdsworth. The investigation concluded at the end of the inquest on 16" February
2015. The conclusion of the inquest was accidental death, following a road traffic crash

on the 13” June 2014 wherein the deceased sustained fatal injuries.

4 | CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE DEATH

On the 13" June 2014 the deceased was involved in a road traffic crash at the junction
of the A19 road and the road from Dalton Piercy village. She had been travelling
northwards in the offside lane, and probably braked suddenly as a van in the central
reservation was about to pull out and join the northbound carriageway. She lost control
of her vehicle, crossed over the junction and collided almost head on with a southbound
vehicle travelling in the offside southbound lane.

5 | CORONER’S CONCERNS

During the course of the inquest the evidence revealed matters giving rise to concern. In
my opinion there is a risk that future deaths will occur unless action is taken. In the
circumstances it is my statutory duty to report to you.

The MATTERS OF CONCERN are as follows. —

(1) This is the latest in several serious incidents at this junction, three of which have
been fatal within the last five years. All of the fatal incidents have involved vehicles either
turning right at this junction to join the northbound A19, or turning right from the
northbound into the Dalton Piercy junction.

6 | ACTION SHOULD BE TAKEN

In my opinion action should be taken to prevent future deaths and | believe you
[AND/OR your organisation] have the power to take such action. The specific action is
the closure of the junction to traffic wishing to turn right.

YOUR RESPONSE

You are under a duty to respond to this report within 56 days of the date of this report,
namely by 15 April 205. |, the coroner, may extend the period.

Your response must contain details of action taken or proposed to be taken, setting out
the timetable for action. Otherwise you must explain why no action is proposed.

COPIES and PUBLICATION

| have senta ue of a report to the Chief Coroner and to the following Interested
Person - - who may find it useful or of interest.

The Chief Coroner may publish either or both in a complete or redacted or summary
form. He may send a copy of this report to any person who he believes may find it useful
or of interest. You may make representations to me, the coroner, at the time of your
response, about the release or the publication of your response by the Chief Coroner.

18 February 2015

Responses

2 responses published against this report on judiciary.uk. A response is a body's written reply to the coroner's concerns; publication is at the discretion of the Chief Coroner's office, so an absent response does not mean nobody replied.

Response from Hartlepool Borough Council (PDF)
REAR and Neighbourhoods Department Civic Centre
Hartlepool TS24 8AY
Assistant Director

(Neighbourhoods) — _|
28 APR 2015 DX 60669 Hartlepool-1
Email:
Our Ref | HARTLEPOOL
BOROUGH COUNCIL
Your Ref

20" April 2015

C WM Donnelly

Senior Coroner for Hartlepool
The Coroners Service

Town Hall

Albert Road

Middlesbrough

TS1 2QJ

Dear Mr Donnelly
INQUEST INTO THE DEATH OF THE LATE KERI VICTORIA HOLDSWORTH

Thank you for your letter dated the 17" April, 2015. My apologies if there has been
any misunderstanding.

The position is that this stretch of road network falls under the jurisdiction of Highways
England (formerly known as The Highways Agency).

All responsibility for speed restrictions, layout design and potential scheme
improvements lies with them and not with ourselves at Hartlepool Borough Council.

We are however in dialogue with Highways England and will assist in any associated
external, third party issues that may arise through design briefs etc that are required.

| contacted Highways England (Highways Agency) upon receipt of your last

141° correspondence and asked them as lead body to respond on behalf of both
ourselves and the Highways Agency, explaining the position in respect of potential
studies being carried out to improve the safety of the network. All funding responsibility
for improvements to the A19 network lie with Highways England and therefore deems
them to be the project sponsor and instigator of any improvement scheme(s).

0420 C W M Donnelly, The Coroners Service, Town Hall, Albert Road, Middlesbrough.docx

-2-
| hope this clarifies the position, and if | can be of any further assistance, please do not
EN oF alternatively e-mail at

—_— to contact me on

Yours sincerely

P|
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR (NEIGHBOURHOODS)

oners Service, Town Hall, Albert Road, Middlesbrough.docx

o420C WM Donnelly, The Cor
Response from Highways Agency (PDF)
|| HIGHWAYS
AGENCY

Safe roads, reliable journeys, informed travellers

Our ref:

Your ref: Asset Delivery Manager (Acting)
3 SOUTH
Lateral

Mr C W M Donnelly 8 City Walk

Senior Coroner for Hartlepool Leeds LS11 9AT

The Coroners Service

Town Hall Direct Line: F

Albert Road
Middlesbrough 3 March 2015
TS1 2QJ

Dear Sir

REGULATION 28 REPORT
INQUEST INTO THE DEATH OF THE LATE KERI VICTORIA HOLDSWORTH

| refer to your letter of 28 February 2015 enclosing your Regulation 28 Report following
your inquest into the death of Keri Holdsworth on 13 June 2014.

You have requested in your report that the Highways Agency close the A19 Dalton
Piercy junction to traffic wishing to turn right, and report to you what action the
Highways Agency intends to take in this respect.

Prior to the above accident the Highways Agency undertook a Route Safety Action Plan
to identify locations on the A19 that display a poor accident record. This highlighted the
junctions at Elwick, a short distance north of the Dalton Piercy junction. Study work was
initiated to look at what improvements could be made to the junction including the
provision of a bridge and the closure of the central reserve gaps. Following the above
accident the scope of this study was extended to consider whether the provision of a
bridge at Elwick could facilitate the closure of some or all of the central reserve gaps,
including the Dalton Piercy junction, along the section of the A19 between the A689 and
A179 junctions. Hartlepool Borough Council are a partner in this study.

The study is due to report in August 2015. Closure of any of the gaps, including the
Dalton Piercy junction will be dependent on the outcome of the study which will consider
whether there are viable alternative routes for right turning traffic and whether there is a
strong business case for doing so. Construction of any subsequent scheme would be
subject to the availability of funds.

Yours faithfull

NDD Yorks & NE
Email:

Dalton Piercy Coroners Letter.docx Page 1 of 1

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