Coroner sets date for review hearing into death of vulnerable woman, 32, at Blackpool mental health facility
A date has been set for the review hearing into the tragic death of a vulnerable woman who died while in the care of a secure mental health facility in Blackpool.
Danielle Robertson, 32, of South Shore, was a patient at The Harbour psychiatric hospital, off Preston New Road, when she died on November 23, 2024. Following her death, Lancashire Police launched an investigation into how and why Danielle died while she was a patient in ‘state detention’, meaning she was compulsorily detained under the Mental Health Act.
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His Majesty’s Coroner for Blackpool and Fylde, Alan Wilson, has confirmed that the review hearing into Danielle’s death will take place on Thursday 19 March, 2026 at 2.30pm, with Rachel Frudd acting as coroner’s officer.
A pre-inquest review hearing in March 2025 heard that, while the matter was at the time being probed by the police, a Rapid Learning Review was also being undertaken by the Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust , which runs The Harbour.
Blackpool coroner Margaret Taylor previously said that the full inquest hearing into Danielle’s death would not be able to proceed until investigations by the police were complete. She said that if the Crown Prosecution Service decided that a criminal court hearing should proceed, that would have to be held before the inquest could take place.
Mrs Taylor said: “Certain deaths, such as those in state detention, mean inquiries are extended and more information gathering is needed, so it will take longer. I will be sitting with a jury for the inquest and they will hear the evidence, they will ask the statutory question and they will make the decisions.”