Lytham teenager Bella Greer, 14, took her own life after being bullied at school, inquest hears

A ‘sweet' and ‘bubbly’ 14-year-old girl took her own life after being bullied at school, an inquest heard on Thursday.

Bella Greer, 14, was tragically found unresponsive after hanging herself in her bedroom, at her family home in Ansdell on October 5, 2023 - but her mother stressed that she felt it was a 'cry for help' that went wrong.

Mum tried to save young Bella

Bella's mother, Sarah, had gone upstairs to invite her daughter down for some cake at around 6pm on the Thursday evening, when made the tragic discovery.

Mrs Greer performed CPR but was sadly unable to resuscitate Bella despite her best efforts.

'Jovial and happy' with no signs of depression

The court heard that the St Bede's pupil had received some negative feedback from school, and an incident with another pupil had upset Bella earlier in the day.

A friend had described Bella as having 'shrugged it off' as she was known to do, and she was also noted as having a 'jovial and happy' personality.

During the inquest, Coroner Louise Rae read out statements that painted Bella (or Isabelle) as a positive young person, who showed no obvious signs of depression.

Moved schools because of bullying

However, the teenager had been a victim of bullying since a young age, with her parents making the decision to remove her from Lytham High School because of the way she was being treated by other pupils.

The 'unpleasant' behaviours towards 'sweet' and 'generous' Bella, was said to have started again at her new school. She had also recently attended a GP with her mother to get help with her mental health.

'It was a cry for help', says mum

A letter sent from Sarah Greer to the police was read out during the inquest, at Blackpool Town Hall.

In it, she describes how Bella had enjoyed a 'really happy day' with her sister on Oct 04, 2023.

They had been out for food and Bella had been dancing around and with no signs that she was planning to end her life.

Mrs Greer stressed that she did not believe it was a deliberate attempt to end her life, but a cry for help.

A 'typical' teenage girl

A statement by Det Insp Montgomery, the Senior Investigating Officer who took over the case on October 6, 2023, describes how Bella had left a note that referred to 'typical teenage girl' problems, including an incident with another pupil that had upset her.

Det Insp Montgomery added that there was no evidence of any pre-planning, although the coroner ruled that as Bella left a note, this was evidence that she had intended to end her life.

'Urgent referral' went to wrong place

Evidence was given by Catherine Watts, a mental health nurse and manager for the Access Team at Lancashire and South Cumbria Foundation Trust (LSCft).

She referred to a Serious Incident Report which had been compiled in response to Bella's death.

The court heard that Bella had been referred for an 'urgent' mental health assessment by her GP, on September 12, 2023.

However, the referral had not been received as it had gone to the wrong email address.

Two days later, on September 14, a member of the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) team helped Bella to complete a self-referral.

This was marked 'urgent' meaning it should trigger a triage review within 48 hours, and an assessment within two weeks.

But it wasn't triaged until October 03 because of 'staff deficits', the court heard.

Ursula Martin, Chief Strategy and Improvement Officer at Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust (LSCft), said: “We fully acknowledge the conclusion reached by HM Coroner into the death of Isabella Greer and I would like to extend our condolences to her family.

“The safety of those in our care is our utmost priority and the death of any patient while under any of our services will always be regrettable. Following Isabella's death, we carried out a detailed investigation into care delivery concerns, which identified triage and communication issues between teams.

“We take the findings very seriously, they offer us an opportunity to learn lessons so we can endeavour to do everything to try to prevent similar issues occurring. We have addressed the issues highlighted through enhanced training and reviewed communication protocols.

“Once again, our heartfelt sympathies go to Isabella’s loved ones during this incredibly difficult time.”