Inquest concludes into death of Ben Smith in Holcroft Lane crash

Ben Smith died aged just 17 at around 9.30pm on Monday, July 18, 2022, in a serious and fatal accident on Holcroft Lane in Culcheth.

A 13-year-old boy was also taken to hospital with serious injuries following the crash.

An inquest into the death of the Warrington college student, who lived in Cadishead, concluded at Warrington Coroner’s Court on Wednesday.

Offering her ‘very sincere condolences’ to Mr Smith’s family for their loss, Victoria Davies, area coroner for Cheshire, resumed the inquest by explaining that its purpose is to answer four statutory questions, and not to establish blame.

These are who died, where and when they died, and how they came by their death, including by what means and the circumstances leading up to the death.

The court heard that Mr Smith, a full-time engineering student at Warrington Vale Royal College, was born at Hope Hospital in Salford and lived with his family in Cadishead.

A statement prepared by his mother Sue Alcock, present in court along with two of his aunts, was read out by the coroner, and she described him as a ‘loving and caring person’.

He loved playing football and always had a football in his rucksack, and he had a lot of friends who he would meet in the park on his scooter.

The court heard how July 18, 2022, was the hottest day of the year, with Mr Smith telling his mother that he was going to meet friends in Culcheth.

As he left home, he said to his mother: “Love you, see you later,” to which she replied telling him to be safe on his scooter.

She spoke to him again at around 9pm that evening and he told her he was coming home, adding: “See you in a bit, love you.”

Ben Smith sadly died in the collision in Culcheth

At around 9.20pm, the family received news that Mr Smith had been involved in an accident and was in a bad way.

In the statement, Ms Alcock said: “Ben was loved so much and is so missed,” and she later added: “He is the best kid in the world.”

The court also heard a statement prepared by Michael O’Brien, a paramedic for North West Ambulance Service, who attended the scene after receiving reports of a serious road traffic collision.

On arrival, he saw a police officer giving chest compressions to Mr Smith, with Mr Smith in cardiac arrest, unconscious, without a pulse and not breathing.

A second person at the scene, boy two, also received medical treatment for serious injuries and was later taken to hospital.

Mr O’Brien, after speaking with a doctor who arrived, confirmed that Mr Smith had suffered ‘catastrophic head injuries incompatible with life’, and he was pronounced dead at the scene at 9.45pm.

Balloons, flower bouquets and tribute messages were left at the roadside in the days following the incident, with Cheshire Police appealing for anyone with any information or video footage to come forward.

Mr Smith’s heartbroken family issued a tribute to him that read: “The kind-hearted boy who made everyone laugh. He was deeply loved and will be missed by so many people.

“Always loved but never forgotten. A loving son and brother.”

Cheshire Police made a fresh appeal for information seven months on, in particular looking to speak to the owner of a red motorcycle seen just prior to the collision, with officers stating they ‘may be key to understanding the exact circumstances of the incident’.

In the appeal, Mr Smith’s mother said: “I am struggling to come to terms with the loss of my son at such a young age.

Floral tributes were left at the scene on Holcroft Lane in Culcheth

“I know that this will not bring Ben back, but any help from the rider or other witnesses will help me and the police investigation into the collision.”

Another statement heard at the inquest was from PC Joanne Baxendale told of how a number of vehicles had stopped at the scene of the collision.

A moped was on its side and two men were on the ground, one of which had ‘extensive head injuries’ and was receiving CPR from a member of the public. She took over CPR until paramedics arrived.

A youth, boy three, was taken to a police station and underwent a fitness test, where it was not deemed to be impaired.

The court also heard a statement from PC Amber Dicks who attended the collision and spoke to the second male who was also injured, with the court hearing that he could not recall what had happened.

PC Catherine Hilton, a collision investigator for Cheshire Police, interviewed boy three, who said that he was following a bike being ridden by Mr Smith and boy two, after they all left a park near Culcheth High School, but he lost sight of them on Holcroft Lane

He said they were overtaken by a red motorbike ridden by ‘adults wearing proper clothing’, and he later came across the scene of the collision involving Mr Smith and boy two.

PC Hilton also interviewed boy two, who said he ‘could not remember much, just bits’, such as blue flashing lights from the scene.

The next statement the court heard was prepared by John Stocker, a member of the public who saw two scooters being ridden in single file on the roads in the area shortly before the incident.

He lost sight of them after turning onto Holcroft Lane and then came across the scene of the collision, where he stopped and told boy three, who was stood next to a bike on a stand and ‘appeared in shock’, to call an ambulance.

A fatal road traffic collision report prepared by the police was then read out which stated that Mr Smith was riding the bike and boy two was a pillion passenger, or person who travels behind the rider.

The collision was said to have occurred near a right-hand bend in the rural, single-carriageway lane between Culcheth and Glazebrook, which has a ‘clearly signposted’ 50mph speed limit.

Floral tributes were left at the scene on Holcroft Lane in Culcheth

The scene was described as still light but around sunset, dry, hot and humid, with temperatures in the high 20Cs and dry.

There was no street lighting and traffic was said to be light, with no obstacles in the road, which was described as in a ‘good state of repair’.

A forensic report stated that blood found in a helmet from the scene was more than a billion times more likely to be from Mr Smith than any other unrelated person.

Another report after a post-mortem examination revealed evidence of a ‘substantial blunt force trauma to the head, causing the skull to fracture’.

A reconstruction was conducted, and on the basis of all the evidence, the RTC report concluded that the bike Mr Smith was riding with a passenger made contact with a kerb, unseating them both, with Mr Smith then colliding with a fence post and suffering ‘rapid if not instant death’.

The inquest heard the bike was travelling between 30mph and 40mph when it fell, with no evidence of any prior loss of control, and that Mr Smith was wearing a helmet and that boy two was not.

Concluding the inquest, coroner Davies said: “On the basis of the evidence I have heard, Ben Smith was out with friends on July 18, 2022.

“At some point in the evening around 9pm, he left with a friend riding a Suzuki motorbike. He was wearing a helmet, The passenger was not.

“At around 9.30pm, something occurred causing the bike to make contact with a kerb on Holcroft Lane heading towards Glazebrook.

“It is not clear what caused this to happen. Ben Smith was unseated and collided with a fence post. I accept the cause of death as head injuries.”

Coroner Davies reached a conclusion that the death was accidental.