Brief
Coroner flags missing safeguarding guidance after Suffolk boarding school pupil killed
The inquest highlighted gaps in child‑protection software use and record‑keeping at the Royal Hospital School.
By Felo News Desk · Published
A Suffolk coroner has warned that the lack of universal safeguarding guidance contributed to the death of 16‑year‑old Georgia Scarff, who was hit by a lorry on the A14 near her home on 15 April 2024, the day before she was due to return to the Royal Hospital School for the summer term.
Scarff, a boarding pupil at the Royal Hospital School in Holbrook, Suffolk, had been placed on a watchlist after her father's death and had previously sought help for panic attacks. The inquest heard she called her mother at 1.20 am on the day of the incident, and 40 minutes later emergency services were notified that she had died on the westbound carriageway.
The coroner’s prevention‑of‑future‑deaths report criticised the absence of a national guidance system for students moving between schools and noted that not all staff were proficient with the school’s child‑protection software, resulting in missing information in Scarff’s records.
Key facts
- Georgia Scarff, 16, died after being hit by a lorry on the A14 near Bury St Edmunds on 15 April 2024. (dailymail.co.uk)
- The coroner issued a report warning of a lack of universal safeguarding guidance for schools. (dailymail.co.uk)
- The Royal Hospital School’s staff were found not fully proficient in using child‑protection software, leaving gaps in Scarff’s records. (dailymail.co.uk)
Sources
- [1] dailymail.co.uk — originally reported as “Coroner warns about lack of safeguarding guidance after pupil death”
