Neglect in a Place of Safety: The Tragic Loss of Shannara ‘Jade’ Donnelly and Her Family’s Fight for Accountability

We were approached by the family of 22 year old Shannara ‘Jade’ Donnelly following her unexpected death whilst she was detained in a Place of Safety at Chase Farm Hospital in June 2023. Jade had been taken there by police for her own safety and protection due to an acute mental health crisis, and although she was supposed to be under level 3 observations (within eyesight) she managed to create a ligature from her hair extensions and tie this around her neck. Her actions were recorded on CCTV, but despite the unusual movements and her subsequent collapse to the floor she lay there unattended for a considerable period of time before staff realised that she was not ‘asleep’. We represented the family through a jury inquest where much harrowing evidence was heard. The jury returned a narrative conclusion, including that the cause of Jade’s death was contributed to by neglect.

Kerry Donnelly, mother of Shannara, who went by Jade, said: “As a family we have been desperate to know what happened to our beloved Jade in her final hours. She was taken by police to a place of safety at Chase Farm Hospital in June 2023 and although she was under strict observations, she never made it home alive.

“Her grandmother and I have struggled deeply with this fact, particularly as we didn’t know she had entered the facility, until we got the call that changed our lives forever. We have, and will remain, determined to understand how she was let down by a system which should have kept her safe during her darkest hours.

“Before her death, Jade sadly lost three members of her family who were all very important to her and she struggled deeply with the loss. Each took a part of her heart and each left her devastated. This led Jade to have some episodes fighting her inner demons, resulting in numerous stays within different mental health facilities. She believed, as we all would, that her admission to a place of safety would be the beginning of a journey where she could get the help she needed.

“Tragically, whilst in the care of Chase Farm, a very beautiful leaf fell from our family tree. She suffered greatly in her life but still cared tremendously for others, sometimes to her own detriment. She was a special, kind and considerate young woman who will forever remain in our hearts and I believe we owe it to Jade to continue fighting until we understand why we now have to face life without her, a sentence no mother should have to face.”

Emma Wray, medical negligence lawyer at Hodge, Jones & Allen, who are representing the family, said: “This inquest was a painful but crucial step for Jade’s family, who had to sit through each harrowing detail of the last moments of her life and to witness the failures which led to her untimely death whilst detained in a place of safety and supposedly under consistent observation.

“We are grateful to the Coroner, court staff and the jury for their compassion and understanding and hope that lessons have been learnt. We are dealing with a growing number of these cases and repeatedly witnessing the impact it has on families across the country. As warned by the Care Quality Commission (in their annual assessment of the state of health and social care in England published 25/10) we are at risk of ‘failing the future’ of our children and young people, just like Jade, if we can’t provide the care they need today.”