The parents of a Newcastle six-year-old killed by a falling tree in her school playground say they are “devastated beyond words” by her tragic death.
Ella Henderson was crushed underneath a falling willow at Gosforth Park First School in September 2020 as she played with friends at lunchtime. On Tuesday, Newcastle City Council was fined £280,000 after pleading guilty to failings that led to the young girl’s death.
It was found that the local authority had failed to properly identify the poor state of the tree or manage the risk it posed, with the Health and Safety Executive calling the harrowing incident “entirely avoidable”. Ella’s parents, Neil and Vikki Henderson, paid tribute to their beloved daughter and called for lessons to be learned so that other families do not have to endure the same fate.
In a statement issued after the hearing at South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court, they said: “We would like to thank the police and the Health and Safety Executive for their thorough investigations, and the kindness and sensitivity they have treated us with throughout. We are devastated beyond words to hear of the number of times that this outcome could and should have been changed. No family should ever have to go through what we are going through.
“We hope lessons will be learned from this and feel there needs to be better education and information around which trees are appropriate for school playgrounds and the size they are allowed to grow to. We would kindly ask that our privacy is now respected whilst we continue to try to navigate and rebuild our lives around the huge hole that has been created in our life without our beautiful Ella.”
Several children were hit by the falling tree when it came down during strong winds on September 25, 2020. But while the others were able to climb to safety, Ella became crushed under a heavy section of the tree.
She was airlifted to the Royal Victoria Infirmary, but died from her injuries the next morning. In a statement read out in the court, mum Vikki described how the family’s “amazing” life had been turned upside down by the tragedy.
She said: “Having a six-year-old who loves life and wakes up every morning with ‘What are we doing today, Mummy?’, loving everything we did and everywhere we went, to suddenly this life, is just indescribable. Taking her big sister places now and knowing how much she would love everywhere we go and taking photos without her is heartbreaking.
“It’s not just the big things like birthdays, holidays and Christmas, it’s also all the small everyday things like not washing her clothes, not buying her toys or clothes but knowing what she’d love, not setting her place at the table or booking a table in a restaurant for four.
“Going to restaurants and being constantly asked ‘just one child’ and having the empty chair at a table for four. Staying in a cottage and instead of her sharing a room together with her sister, there is now an empty bed. It’s just a constant reminder, not that we will ever need one, that she’s not here.”
The heartbroken mum added: “Every single part of our lives has changed. Getting up every morning, knowing it’s another day without her and another day she’ll miss.
“Being six and healthy makes it very hard to process that she’s not here. I live for my girls and I loved taking them to school every day and picking them up, and doing everything with them, and knowing that I will never take her to school, or a party or holiday again – there are no words to describe how this feels.
“I read something online that sums up this life and it said ‘When you died my heart was torn in two. One side is filled with heartache and the other died with you.’”
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