By Carole Dennett
A brand-new coroner’s courtroom, in Newport, sits unused, while bereaved families face the longest inquest delays in the country. Yet, astonishingly, the IW Coroner’s chief concern appears to be this photograph of the empty room.
A month ago, IW East MP, Joe Robertson, visited the publicly-funded facility and requested a written plan from the coroner, Caroline Sumeray, on how she would address the backlog. According to Ministry of Justice figures, the average wait for an inquest on the Island now stands at 76 weeks – more than double the national average of 30 weeks.
Mr Robertson later posted this photo of the empty courtroom on Facebook. The image showed no people, no paperwork, no proceedings and no breach of privacy – just vacant chairs and tables. Ms Sumeray responded swiftly – not with her plan to reduce delays – but with a demand to remove the photo, claiming it was unlawful.
The dreadful backlog has worsened year on year: 56 weeks in 2021, 63 in 2022, and the latest statistic is 76 weeks in 2024. That year, just 38 inquests were concluded, while 123 were opened.
The coroner’s own website page shows that written inquests scheduled for outcomes to be published over the next three weeks relate to deaths dating back as far as June 2021 up to June 2022 – a delay of up to 211 weeks. Nobody should have to wait that long to find out the official reason their loved one died.
Mr Robertson is still awaiting a response to his original request and has raised the matter with the relevant government minister.
IW West MP, Richard Quigley, is also unhappy about the situation. He responded to the IW Observer: “This isn’t about personalities. We need a mature and robust conversation about dragging the service up to a much higher standard as the effects on people when they have lost loved ones is immense.” He added that the IW Council’s CEO, Wendy Perara, is aware of the issues and is working to resolve them.
In May, Ms Sumeray issued a press release via the IW Council citing a “complex coronial area”, a shortage of local pathologists, major events like sailing festivals and rock concerts, a large prison population and a “fully coastal border” as reasons for the delays. The IW Observer couldn’t see the relevance of some of the points and asked for further information, including on staff turnover. The response came from the IW Coroner, via the IW Council, after the newspaper’s print deadline. It was astonishing in its tone – the coroner clearly sees no need to explain or justify any of the problems in the service to Island residents.
A Freedom of Information Act request has also been submitted, and we will update our readers with further information in a future edition of the IW Observer. While the coroner’s office itself is exempt from those regulations (judicial and administrative decisions are accountable to the High Court and the Lord Chancellor), the Isle of Wight Council, which is required by law to fund and provide support to the coroner, is subject to the Freedom of Information Act.
ISLAND OBSERVATIONS – THE IW OBSERVER’S VIEW!
At a time when public trust in British institutions is already under enormous strain, incidents like this cause lasting and irreparable damage.
To focus on whether a photograph of empty chairs is ‘allowed’, rather than on how long grieving families are waiting for inquests is, in our view, a dereliction of duty by someone paid to support people when they are at their most vulnerable. And our coroner is clearly paid well. According to the Local Government Association coroners are paid between £130,000 and £144,000.
When petty bureaucracy takes precedence over a duty of care to bereaved families, the IW Observer will not be silenced by threats from authority figures. The courtroom in question was paid for by taxpayers – yet the coroner believes the public should not be allowed to see a photo of it, even when it’s empty. This is one small symptom of why so many people have lost faith in our justice system.
We do not accept that publishing the image above is unlawful. But even if it is, the heartbreak endured by families who are waiting long months and even years for answers must take precedence. Telling the full story is, we believe, firmly in the public interest.
According to the website of Middle Temple, the Inn of Court to which Ms Sumeray belongs, she is the full-time coroner for the Isle of Wight. Yet she is also described as “a passionate advocacy trainer” who lectures “widely about Coronial Law”. That entry was updated in November 2024 – while the waiting list of inquests she is responsible for continued to grow.
If Ms Sumeray has time to teach others how to do the job, we suggest she first focuses on doing the one she is paid handsomely for. And if she cannot, she should step aside and let someone else do it.
We recognise that, as a member of the judiciary, Ms Sumeray cannot respond directly. But the experiences shared by Mo Gibson and Sinead Jackson, which will be published later today on our website, are, as MP Joe Robertson says in his column, which will also be published later, “Just the tip of the iceberg.” Something is deeply wrong with this service which is meant to support Islanders and others in their darkest hours.
If you’ve been affected by delays or decisions at the IW Coroner’s Office, and would like to speak to us, please email newsdesk@iwobserver.co.uk or call us on 221050 and press option 1 – it will divert to a mobile phone when our office is closed. Nothing will be published or shared without your express consent – but your experience could help us build a clearer picture of what needs to change, which we will share with the Chief Coroner.
IF YOU NEED SUPPORT FOLLOWING BEREAVEMENT YOU CAN CALL CRUSE BEREAVEMENT SERVICES ON 01983 523030 OR EMAIL THEM: isleofwight.cruse.org.uk.
Mal Butler