An inquest into a “very loving” 20-year-old hospital patient who lived with mental health issues heard that he was simply “not ready” for unescorted leave after his body was found in a wooded area in 2021.

Ty Channce, 20, from Middlesbrough, was found in a wooded area in Nunthorpe on April 28, 2021. He had been a patient at Roseberry Park Hospital, which is run by Tees, Esk and Wear Valley Trust (TEWV).

He was a patient there from 2018, after he was sectioned under the mental health act and lived with psychosis.

The Northern Echo: Ty Channce and his mother Cheryl Allan.Ty Channce and his mother Cheryl Allan. (Image: CHANNCE FAMILY)

The inquest, which first opened in November heard today (February 12), at Teesside Magistrates Court that Mr Channce was found by a member of the public after 6pm on the day of his death after he failed to report back to the hospital where he was last seen by staff at 3pm.

Emergency services including paramedics attended the scene and attempted CPR on Mr Channce but were not successful.

On the day he died, the court heard that Mr Channce was allowed unescorted leave off the hospital grounds for the first time since before the pandemic. Mr Channce’s family were not informed of this. He had previously been allowed to leave the grounds for days at a time.

The court heard that Mr Channce’s family were only called with a warning to “lock [their] doors” as he was missing and had not returned to hospital.

Mr Channce’s family members agreed he was “not ready” to leave the grounds alone.

A statement from Mr Channce's mother Cheryl Allan, which was read to the court, said her son was a “bundle of joy” and brought “love and joy” into his family’s life.

He held a keen interest in sport – at one point as a teenager he was a member of an athletics team but otherwise was a “normal” boy who always “had a smile on his face”.

His father later described him as a “confident young lad”, adding that “heartbreak cannot even come to express how we feel”.

However, the statement acknowledged that Mr Channce “began to change” as he grew older and “started to experiment with drugs”, later showing “odd behaviour and aggression”.

The court then heard that concerns were first raised about Mr Channce’s mental health when he was 16, and he was later detained under the Mental Health Act in August 2018.

He later remained at Roseberry Park following an attack on a family member.

Presiding, Senior Coroner Claire Bailey noted that “(Ty) made some progress” and was transferred to a different ward.

However, leading up to the first Covid-19 lockdown in March 2020, the court heard from his mother, Ms Allan, that her son's mental health was gradually deteriorating.

She said: “He wanted to be sat in his room with the curtains down in the dark. I had raised concerns to members of staff that he was doing this.

“He looked withdrawn and had that vague look in his eyes. He didn’t want to be in that hospital.

“I just knew that he wasn’t well and we raised concerns a lot about him staying in his room and not talking to people.”

By spring 2021, the court heard that his family understood that his discharge was imminent, as they hoped he would be back in the community by the summer.

Leading up to this time his father, Carlton Channce, told the court of plans for a “lads' holiday” to Turkey to mark both his discharge and birthday.

In the final visits from his family, just days before he died, Mr Channce expressed no intention of self-harm or of taking his own life, the court heard.

Ms Allan told the court: “He would get upset because he wanted longer than an hour but he was always excited to see us.”

In the final visit from his mother, on April 20, she noted that he mood “varied” as he felt “guarded” about what he said in front of hospital staff.

His father’s final visit came just two days before he died on April 26, when he noted the same “significant deterioration” of Mr Channce’s mental health.

Concerns were repeatedly raised with hospital staff, the court heard, and Mr Channce’s father was assured “he’s fine”.

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In that same final visit, Mr Channce was reportedly “excited” about a possible discharge, the court heard, but seemed to be “more quiet and reserved”.

The court heard that Home Office pathologist Dr Jennifer Bolton performed an autopsy on Mr Channce and gave the cause of death as being consistent with hanging.

The inquest continues.