Media Statement: Sally and Lucie Andrews | Sheffield

2nd Oct 2024

Today, we have been with Sally and Lucie Andrews (daughters of Bryan and Mary Andrews and sisters of Duncan Andrews) at the Inquest in Sheffield in relation to a case that has attracted national media attention.

Mary and Bryan Andrews – photo supplied by the family via HCC.

The full statement provided to the assembled media by Sally and Lucie is as follows:

“We are grateful to the Coroner for hearing the evidence around the care of Duncan in the lead up to the tragic death of our parents and, although devastating, we welcome her findings today.  

“Our best efforts as a family to get Duncan the care he needed went unheard by many of the health and social care services charged with his care. These failings, missed opportunities, system errors and lack of professionalism contributed to the tragic circumstances we walked into on the morning of Sunday 27th November 2022.  

“Almost two years on and it has been a long, frustrating and mentally draining battle for us to get this heard. It has not been helped by the lack of communication and transparency from those organisations in which all of us place so much trust.  

“Our parents provided a safe and loving environment in which to grow up. They were caring members of the community, with close family, friends and neighbours who loved them and their loss is a hole in all our lives.

“We want to continue to work towards creating a better future for the users accessing the services that failed our family, in order that no other family feels the same tragic loss in their lives that we have to live with every day.

Duncan Andrews – photo provided by family via HCC.

“In particular we are passionate about ensuring that a national care pathway is implemented for people like our brother, who had a complex set of circumstances which needed urgent assessment and treatment.

“As a family we still stand by the statement that our parents sacrificed their lives so Duncan could get a diagnosis of  ‘a serious mental illness’ and it should never have been this way. We have all paid a price in this tragedy and those of us that remain will continue to battle with its aftermath.”  

Patrick Maguire, partner at law firm HCC, added:

Patrick Maguire

“Our clients and the family have lived through a nightmare for almost two years. It has been made all the more distressing because they have been consistently let down by the health and social care services and medical professionals before, during and after the events of November 2022. 

“The family has displayed incredible dignity and they are passionate about making sure no other family has to experience what they have been through.”