Woman dies after contact with police - Thames Valley Police, January 2018

On 22 January 2018 at about 11.15am a man called Thames Valley Police to say he was concerned about the welfare of his mother, who had known mental health issues and had told him she was going to try to take her own life.

The call was graded as urgent, officers went to the woman’s home, paramedics were contacted and she was taken to hospital. The woman was discharged from hospital a short while later.

At 2.20pm the same day, the woman called the police to say she was buying items to kill herself. The call operator contacted a mental health unit where the woman had previously been treated and passed on the information, before informing the woman to contact the centre for support.

At about 3pm the woman called police again on 101 saying she would kill herself and that she was at home. The call operator contacted the mental health centre and was informed they had no concerns about her condition, and that the woman should be told to contact them directly in future.

The call handler attempted to call the woman back but was unable to connect.

At 3.46pm the woman called a third time and informed a call operator she was intending to walk to a petrol station to set fire to herself. The call handler advised the woman to contact the mental health centre.

At 4.05pm a friend of the woman called the police and said the woman had told her she was walking to a nearby park and was going to set herself on fire. The call was logged but no officers dispatched.

At 5.13pm Fire and Rescue service contacted the police to inform them they had received reports of a woman on fire. Officers attended alongside other emergency services. The woman was taken to hospital, but died the next day.

As part of our investigation we examined body-worn video from officers recorded during the first interaction with the woman and took accounts from the officers. We also examined each of the phone conversations police had with the woman, and also with members of the public, in relation to the incident, and the record keeping in relation to these conversations.

Officers and staff at Thames Valley Police were treated as witnesses at all times during the investigation.

It was determined that the officers who went to the woman’s home delivered her into a place of safety, in accordance with national and local policy. We also concluded that the call handlers who dealt with the various calls did not breach any policies, and the decision not to deploy resources was made while acting on information and advice given by the mental health centre.

Based on the evidence available we found no indication that any person serving with the police may have behaved in a manner that would justify the bringing of disciplinary proceedings, or had committed a criminal offence.