Scott Taylor
2 Feb 2026 · Coroner Sonia Hayes · Essex
This report repeats 2 earlier warnings. See the linked reports.
The coroner's concerns
1. active police restraint of a person exhibiting acute behavioural disturbance
“Members of the public were restraining [the deceased] on arrival of the police who quickly became concerned that Mr [name redacted] was exhibiting signs of Acute Behavioural Disturbance and made an emergency call to the ambulance service. The police, during the 999 call, were put on hold on three occasions by the ambulance service and became increasingly concerned about Mr [name redacted] deteriorating condition over an 18 minute period and confirmation that this remained a Category 2 call despite active police restraint with suspected Acute Behavioural Disturbance. Police decided to 'scoop and run' and urgently convey Mr [name redacted] to hospital due to the severity of their concerns. The EEAST Standard Operating Procedure requires escalation to Category 1 where there is active restraint, but this is not linked to Acute Behavioural Disturbance and remains unclear and may continue to cause confusion during triage by contact call handlers.”
2. lack of training for Special Constables on acute behavioural disturbance
“Special Constables are a valuable resource for police forces and may often be first on scene as in this case and should receive the same training in the potential recognition and alert of potential life-threatening conditions.”
3. inconsistent national categorisation of acute behavioural disturbance with active restraint
“It was agreed in evidence that the set of symptoms consistent with Acute Behavioural Disturbance amount to a medical emergency with a significant mortality risk. The evidence was that the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives set the Categories nationally that dictate the required classification for ambulance response to emergencies, however in some ambulance localities the required response is allocated Category 2 and in others Category 1. This means that there is not a national standard for response Acute Behavioural Disturbance with active restraint.”
Linked reports
Closely relatedConfidence 0.85 · high
Earlier report
“lack of understanding of how to treat someone with an acute behavioural disturbance”
This report
“in some ambulance localities the required response is allocated Category 2 and in others Category 1. This means that there is not a national standard for response Acute Behavioural Disturbance with active restraint.”
Closely relatedConfidence 0.90 · high
Earlier report
“insufficient or inadequate instruction of both police and ambulance crew about the critical issues of recognising and responding to a medical emergency and the effects of restraint including positional asphyxia.”
This report
“Special Constables are a valuable resource for police forces and may often be first on scene as in this case and should receive the same training in the potential recognition and alert of potential life-threatening conditions.”