Jack Williams, 18, and Katherine Powell, 17, who had a child together, were found at Bothenhampton reservoir – an inquest heard evidence of previous suicide attempts and difficulties accessing support
The mother of a teenager who died in what’s believed to be a suicide pact with his girlfriend has revealed to an inquest that her son had previously tried to end his own life.
Jack Williams, 18, and Katherine Powell, 17, who shared a baby together, were discovered at Bothenhampton reservoir near Bridport, Dorset, on the morning of January 25 2022.
The Bournemouth inquest was told the couple had been detained on suspicion of possessing an indecent image of a child just six days before their deaths.
In a statement delivered to the court, Mr Williams’ mother, Debbie Williams, described her son as a “much-loved baby” whose arrival marked the “happiest day of my life”.
She revealed she separated from his father when their son reached his first birthday, explaining he felt “rejected” by his dad, and by age 10 he had begun showing “disruptive and answering back” behaviour.
Ms Williams told how by 2016 her son displayed symptoms consistent with ADHD and autism, before attempting an overdose in 2017 aged 14 following their relocation from Coventry to Leamington Spa as his “behaviour and mental health began to deteriorate”.
She explained how she pursued assistance from child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) but encountered obstacles securing the help she believed he required following his diagnosis with Asperger’s syndrome and anxiety. Ms Williams revealed that her son encountered Katherine at his fresh start at Kenilworth School, explaining: “She was a school-year younger, they quickly became good friends and she would come to our house to visit him.
“I really liked Katie, she was very polite and it was lovely to see Jack smiling and laughing when he was with her.
“Despite this his behaviour continued to escalate and I would ask social services for respite but it was always refused.”
Ms Williams disclosed that her son had begun using cannabis and revealed she had uncovered his attempt to take his own life in a nature reserve in 2018, followed by another overdose in January 2019.
She explained that he began displaying “aggressive” tendencies towards her, stating: “I would turn to social services for advice about how to deal with Jack’s challenging behaviour but no-one could help, instead I felt they used any information I provided to them to blame my parenting instead of finding a way to help us.”
Ms Williams described making the “difficult decision” to place her son in foster care, though she maintained contact with him, and as their bond strengthened, she would visit him regularly, including after his relocation to West Bay in Dorset.
She revealed that this visit in July 2021 resulted in a row, adding: “I decided that I wouldn’t contact Jack, I would let him reach out when he was in a better place, by this point the breakdown in our relationship and his behaviour towards me was having a substantial impact on my own mental health.”
Ms Williams revealed that police contacted her when her son and Katherine had vanished on January, 24 2022.
She continued: “I was never informed there was a concern about suicide, had I known I would have advised them of the time when Jack was younger and making plans to hang himself in the nature reserve behind our house.”
Ms Williams explained that officers visited her the next day to break the devastating news of her son’s death, stating: “Being told Jack had died was the last thing I expected to hear.”
Mr Williams’ father, Mark Williams, described his son as the “apple in my eye” in a statement and revealed he had maintained contact following his split from Ms Williams.
He disclosed that his son stayed with him for his 16th birthday, during which he confessed to smoking cannabis and self-harming because he felt “depressed and unhappy”, though he noted his son declined to get assistance from their GP.
The inquest has been postponed until tomorrow.
For emotional support, you can call the Samaritans 24-hour helpline on 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org, visit a Samaritans branch in person or go to the Samaritans website.