Blackpool woman who starved to death was unlawfully killed

A woman who starved to death after being neglected by her mother was unlawfully killed, a coroner has concluded.

Debbie Leitch, 24, who had Down’s syndrome, was found dead at her home in South Shore, Blackpool, on 29 August 2019.

Alan Wilson, senior coroner for Blackpool and Fylde, said Debbie died from “the combined effects of her severely emaciated and neglected state, and debilitation caused by widespread Norwegian scabies mite infection”.

Her mother and full-time paid carer Elaine Clarke, who was jailed in 2022 for gross negligence manslaughter, refused to give evidence at the inquest.

In his ruling Mr Wilson stated: “Debbie […] had care and support needs, and a range of carers and social care professionals would attend the home regularly to provide that care.

“Unbeknown to them, the standard of care shown by Debbie’s mother was at times inappropriate, and she would take steps to actively try to mask how she was treating Debbie.”

He added: “At other times, she may use disguised compliance to give professionals the false impression that she was doing what she could to comply with any plans to safeguard or promote Debbie’s welfare when this was not the case, such as by agreeing to medical appointments which would then be missed, often providing a seemingly plausible explanation.”

Mr Wilson said when Debbie’s cousin raised concerns after visiting the family home on 26 July 2019 with social services and her GP practice but by the time the GP arrived, Clarke had “taken steps to make both Debbie and the house more presentable, and she reassured the GP that Debbie was being appropriately cared for”.

Six days later, a visiting social worker attending the home “was similarly reassured”.

The coroner said Debbie was significantly neglected over the following weeks, remaining largely in her room.

On 29 August, emergency services were called to the house and found Debbie lying on her bedroom floor.

She had been dead for a number of hours.

Mr Wilson said: “The conditions in which she had been living were described as uninhabitable.

“As a result of the way she had been neglected over the preceding four weeks, a subsequent post mortem examination revealed she died from the combined effects of her severely emaciated and neglected state, and debilitation caused by widespread Norwegian scabies mite infection, which is regarded as a treatable condition.

“Significantly, the fact that Debbie had Down’s Syndrome, a learning disability, made it more likely that her mother would be able to persuade others she was providing an acceptable level of care for Debbie.”