Teachers dangling after student Sam Linton dies from asthma attack

Joanna Sugden , : {}

A headmistress and four other members of staff have been suspended from a school that faces possible legal action after a pupil died from an asthma attack.

Sam Linton, 11, was made to sit in a corridor at Offerton High School, in Stockport, struggling to breathe while no ambulance was called. His parents are considering legal action against the school and the council after Sam died in hospital two hours later in December 2007. An inquest jury found that the schools neglect had been a significant factor in his death.

A spokesman for Stockport council said yesterday that the five staff had been suspended while an internal inquiry is carried out. Evelyn Leslie, the head teacher, and Jan Ford, the teacher who told Sam to sit in the corridor, are among those who have been asked to step down during the inquiry.

Sam had been wheezing continually and using an inhaler on the day that he died but staff failed to call 999. He was left to wait in a hallway until two other pupils found him and raised the alarm. By the time his mother arrived Sams lips had turned blue.

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The three-week inquest at Stockport Coroners Court was told that valuable time was lost while Sam was made to sit in the corridor. The jury found last week that Sam died from natural causes but said that neglect at an individual and systemic level had been a significant contributory factor.

Sams father, Paul Linton, described the councils move as too little, too late. He told The Times: We are considering legal action against the school and the local authority.

I would hope that the head teacher doesnt get another job as a head at another school. Education-wise I couldnt fault the school but on the policy for looking after a child that was ill they get a big fat zero.

The jury found that staff had failed to implement the asthma policy, were not sufficiently trained to deal with asthma and that a healthcare plan was not in place. Information about Sams attacks was not shared among staff and they failed to monitor Sams condition on the day of his death, the jury said.

The school, which was judged unsatisfactory in its latest Ofsted inspection, refused to comment. A spokesman for Stockport council said that detailed evidence presented to the inquest and the verdict of the jury had led them to carry out an inquiry.

While it has been some time since Sams death there has not been a period of inactivity, he said. Immediately following Sams death, the governing body reviewed the handling of pupils medical needs relating to asthma and other medical conditions, and has adapted systems and practices at the school.

The council has decided three times not to hold a serious case review, saying that the case did not meet the necessary criteria.