Overview

• Coroner Rebecca Sutton confirmed the suicides of Sophie and Rowan Cotton and identified systemic failures in their care.
• The Right Care, Right Person protocol was criticized for police refusal to attend welfare calls before Sophie’s death on January 6, 2025.
• Rowan Cotton, who attempted suicide on January 7, was not referred to psychiatric liaison services during his brief hospital stay and died by suicide on January 18, 2025.
• The coroner plans to issue Prevention of Future Deaths reports to Durham Constabulary and the National College of Policing to address protocol concerns.
• Angela Cotton, the siblings’ mother, expressed heartbreak over losing her children and criticized the failures of a 'broken system.'