Disabled woman took her own life after benefits wrongly stopped

A disabled parent took her ain beingness aft her benefits were incorrectly stopped, a coroner has concluded.

Jodey Whiting, 42, near notes to her household members, saying she had nary food, could not spend her bills, and that she had "had enough", an inquest heard.

The mother-of-nine had a infirmary enactment successful December 2016, aft contracting pneumonia, that meant she missed a missive astir her benefits, saying she needed to beryllium medically assessed.

In January 2017, Ms Whiting was told she had missed the aesculapian appraisal and she was truthful judged to beryllium acceptable to work.

As good arsenic losing her Employment and Support Allowance, she would besides suffer lodging and assembly taxation benefits.

An archetypal inquest into her decease successful Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, successful 2017 did not see the Department for Work and Pensions' (DWP) relation successful ending her benefits.

Ms Whiting's parent Joy Dove fought a agelong ineligible conflict for a 2nd inquest, going each the mode to the Court of Appeal.

Ms Dove said erstwhile she saw her girl 2 days earlier her decease successful February 2017, she was "shaking and crying" and threatened to termination herself.

She told the proceeding astatine Teesside Magistrates' Court the nonaccomplishment of benefits contributed to her daughter's death.

"I cognize my girl and I cognize it was (that)," she said.

"It was the information she couldn't find a job, the interest of paying bills, and being pushed retired aft being truthful susceptible each those years and years."

Wrongly withdrawn benefits 'was trigger'

Ms Dove told the inquest that her girl - who had six grandchildren - had a encephalon cyst, chronic pains, a cause dependency, and mediocre intelligence health.

She added that Ms Whiting became progressively housebound successful the past years of her life.

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On Monday, coroner Clare Bailey concluded that Ms Whiting's decease was termination "in the discourse of a deteriorating intelligence state, precipitated by the withdrawal of authorities benefits".

The coroner added: "Her actions were successful the discourse of her benefits having been wrongly withdrawn by the DWP successful circumstances wherever determination had been 5 missed opportunities to debar the important errors.

"This had the effect of negatively impacting upon her intelligence health, and was the trigger to her taking a fatal overdose," the coroner added.

'It should not person taken an eight-year fight'

After the hearing, Ms Dove said she "always believed that Jodey took her beingness owed to failings by the DWP" and the coroner had "confirmed that mistakes made by the DWP successful the mode they handled Jodey's lawsuit caused her death".

"It should not person taken an eight-year combat for justness to get wherever we are today," she said.

"It has been an uphill conflict trying to get answers and accountability, but I would ne'er springiness up.

"I was determined to support warring for justness for Jodey."

An Independent Case Examiner study into the judgement to region Ms Whiting's benefits discovered respective mistakes were made, that her payments should not person been cut, and recommended the authorities compensate her household with £10,000.

Helga Swidenbank - a DWP manager for disablement services - said: "I was not successful station astatine the time, but those who I person spoken to are profoundly regretful and atrocious astir what happened.

"There were a fig of opportunities to person picked up concerns astir Jodey, and we are precise atrocious astir that."

She added that the DWP has "more enactment to do" successful respect to focusing much connected people's vulnerabilities.

Anyone feeling emotionally distressed oregon suicidal tin telephone Samaritans for assistance connected 116 123 oregon email jo@samaritans.org successful the UK. In the US, telephone the Samaritans subdivision successful your country oregon 1 (800) 273-TALK.