Teen's life could have been saved if Scout leaders had given basic instructions, inquest hears

A teenager’s life could have been saved if he had been given “basic” instructions by Scout leaders, an inquest heard.

Ben Leonard, 16, from Stockport, Greater Manchester, was on an organised expedition with the Reddish Explorer Scouts on August 26 2018 when he suffered a serious head injury after falling 200 feet from cliffs on the Great Orme in North Wales.

Ben and two friends had separated from the other Scouts and were not accompanied by any of the three Scout leaders on the trip when he fell from the cliff edge.

The Scout Association for the first time accepted responsibility for the death on the first day of the inquest, five and a half years after he died.

Gareth Williams was the first of the three Scout leaders on the trip to give evidence at Ben’s inquest, now in its fourth week, at Manchester Civil Justice Centre.

Mr Williams, at the time aged 26 and an assistant Scout leader, told the hearing it was his first trip as a Scout Leader, he had never met Ben before and he was asked to go because “I was basically another car to use as transport”, he said.

On the day of Ben’s death, he said he last saw the youngster who was with two other explorer Scouts in an area known as Happy Valley on the way up to the top of the Orme with most of the Scouts on a “meandering path”.

Sophie Cartwright KC, counsel to the inquest, asked him if any instructions were given or guidance or parameters set before the walk up the Orme.

“Not that I can recall,” Mr Williams said, “I can’t recall having any concerns at all about the terrain.”

While on the walk, he received a call from another Scout Leader, Mary Carr, who was ahead of him asking where Ben and his two friends were, but they were not with him.

Mr Williams then called Sean Glaister, the most senior Scout leader on the trip. He called one of the boys’ mobiles, but they did not pick up and he left a voicemail.

Mr Williams continued: “Sean got a phone call and he turned around and said, ‘Oh you’re joking!’. Then I remember hearing sirens. I can’t remember if he said, ‘Ben’s fallen’ or ‘Ben’s had an accident.’

“After that it just got quite panicked.”

He added: “I have reflected on this for five years. I could not even conceive of the possibility they would not re-join the path and try and join the group back up.”

Bernard Richmond KC, representing Ben’s family suggested Mr Williams had “lost” the three boys on the walk up the Orme.

He said: “I know it’s hard but if you are a supervising adult, supervising others and you can’t see them, you have lost them?”

Mr Williams said on occasion Scouts will not always be in sight on activities.

Mr Richmond continued: “There was an absolute failure to demarcate safe and unsafe areas.

“It was the most basic of requirements, that you identify for these young people the boundaries between safe areas to walk and unsafe areas.”

Mr Williams replied: “Honestly, I, I felt that the hazard was self-evident.”

Mr Richmond said: “But it plainly wasn’t was it?”

“No,” Mr Williams replied, “I did not even anticipate they would go near cliffs.”

Mr Richmond added: “Ben’s life would have been saved if somebody said to him, ‘This area has to be avoided, these routes are all safe.’ That’s all it would’ve taken?”

“I think so, I can’t know, but I think so,” Mr Williams said.

Mr Richmond continued: “Can you think of a more basic failure of care Mr Williams, short of pushing someone off the cliff yourself? There isn’t, is there?”

“I’m not sure,” Mr Williams replied.

The inquest continues.

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