Boy, 13, took his personal life after taunts from fellow pupils about his sexuality, inquest hears

A 13-year-old boy who killed himself had been the victim of a sustained campaign of cruel taunts about his sexuality at school, his grieving mother told a pre-inquest hearing.

Leyton Taylor was subjected to the callous jibes after admitting to other children at Wymondham High Academy in Norfolk that he had a boyfriend.

His family noticed a change in his behaviour, including becoming much quieter, before he was found unresponsive in his bedroom.

Leyton was rushed to hospital but died there five days later.

His mother, Kerry Taylor, told the hearing: ‘None of the boys in that school accepted him. They told him they would never accept him for the way he spoke.

‘He was a sassy speaker, more feminine – not the “hard boy” type. This wasn’t going on for just a little while.’

Chris Smith, the headteacher of co-ed Wymondham High, which has around 1,600 pupils aged 11-18 and is rated ‘good’ by Ofsted, said the school hadn’t known about Leyton’s problems until after his death.

‘We weren’t aware of them at the time but we learned afterwards that there had been remarks made,’ he said.

The teenager had ‘always come across as happy and confident speaking to adults’, he added.

Ms Taylor found her son unconscious in his bedroom at 8.40pm on April 6, shortly after the Easter holidays began.

She and Leyton’s stepfather, Kyle Townson, desperately performed CPR until paramedics arrived and took over.

The Year 8 pupil was then transported to Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge but doctors were unable to save him.

The provisional cause of death given at Norfolk Coroner’s Court on Thursday was brain stem death, out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and asphyxiation by hanging.

Mr Townson revealed he had spotted changes in Leyton’s behaviour in the weeks leading up to his death.

‘He had been a bit quiet when he came in from school. He wanted to go and sit upstairs in his room,’ he said.

‘Before, he’d just come sit down and chat and tell you all about his day.’

Detective Sergeant Mark Carrier, of Norfolk Police, confirmed enquiries revealed ‘throwaway comments’ had been made about Leyton’s sexuality by other children.

He had also used the video chat site OmeTV, although officers were unable to recover any records of his activity.

The app was removed from Apple and Google platforms recently following international concerns about children being at risk of grooming, exploitation and cyberbullying.

The pre-inquest hearing also heard evidence from staff at schools Leyton had attended previously.

Karen O’Neill, associate assistant headteacher and safeguarding lead at Diss High School, said there had been ‘name-calling’ but no recorded incidents relating to Leyton’s homosexuality.

Pippa Delaine, the assistant headteacher at Dickleburgh Primary School in Diss mentioned he had seen the school’s counsellor but mainly to discuss a sibling’s health.

Leyton was the second oldest in his ‘large mixed family’ of eight children and one of the youngest has Dravet syndrome, a rare, severe and life-limiting form of epilepsy that requires round-the-clock care, the hearing was told.

The teenager went swimming with his family the day before his death and had been involved in minor family disputes – one over a sibling’s bike and another where one trapped their fingers in a door.

Ms Taylor told coroner Yvonne Blake: ‘I do love him and I wish he was here.’

In an online tribute, the family said: ‘Leyton was a one-of-a-kind soul – funny, sarcastic, quirky and always full of life.

‘His infectious sense of humour, boundless energy and loving spirit left a lasting mark on all who knew him.

‘A free spirit with a heart full of love, he touched lives in ways words can hardly describe.

‘Leyton’s journey was one of bright smiles and deep love but also of hidden struggles – struggles we wish we could have known and helped him through.

‘His passing has opened our eyes to the importance of raising awareness for mental health and suicide prevention, especially among young people who may not have the words to ask for help.’

Pupils at Wymondham High were offered additional support after the tragedy and Mr Smith wrote to families.

A full inquest will take place on April 7 next year.