A coroner has revealed that ‘no one was to blame’ for the death of a 16-year-old boarding schoolgirl who took her life the day before she was due to sit her first detention.

Caitlyn Scott-Lee, who was a pupil at Wycombe Abbey, was discovered by members of staff shortly before midnight on Friday, April 21, 2023.

The teenager, who was autistic and suffered from both depression and anxiety, died a day before she was due to sit her first-ever detention after a bottle of vodka was discovered in her locker.

READ MORE: Caitlyn Scott-Lee’s father questions if autism fully considered by inquest

On the final day of the inquest (Wednesday, May 1), which was attended by members of Caitlyn’s family, senior coroner Crispin Butler revealed that the 16-year-old’s diary entries were the best way to understand a ‘complex picture’, with the notes detailing the lead up to her death.

On the day of her death, Caitlyn was in a singing class, before she visited a doctor, and then the school’s nurses.

The teen was then spotted playing a drum set at around 7pm, before she was last seen on CCTV at roughly 8.15pm in the school’s performance centre.

She was found dead several hours later.

Mr Butler, who led the inquest, said: “ASD [Autism Spectrum Disorder] is different in everyone and Caitlyn was Caitlyn – she was unique.

“It would have been hard to physically see a depreciation as her diary was a collection of her thoughts.

“There wasn’t anything to suggest to those around her she was going to do what she did.

“Caitlyn’s diary had positive and negative features with her final entries being made on April 20.

“These thoughts were galvanised and showed anger.

“What happened was in complete contrast to her entries – nobody other than Caitlyn knew what was going to happen.

“No one is to blame.”

The inquest heard how Caitlyn had a history of depression and anxiety, and she was diagnosed with both mental health issues in 2020 and 2021 respectively.

She attended in a GP appointment on Wednesday, March 29, 2023, where she told Dr Jude-Joseph Gubral that she felt ‘on edge’ for ‘no reason.’

The doctor, who was a trainee at the time but had experience with dealing with teenagers and young adults with mental health issues, referred her to CAMHAS (the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) for further help.

The GP, who gave evidence on Tuesday, April 30, revealed that whilst Caitlyn admitted to having thoughts of suicide and self-harm she never acted on it. There was nothing to suggest on the day he saw her that she was suicidal.

If there was evidence, the young doctor said he ‘would have called the crisis team.’

Mr Butler, the senior coroner, continued: “This is a tragedy for the family – lots of people cared for Caitlyn.

“We don’t know what time it happened – if no-one is around, there is no opportunity for prevention.

“Caitlyn’s diary is the largest part of a complex picture – if you take the diary away, there was nothing to help us at all what happened on that day, excluding from what the witnesses said.

“There are no contributing factors.”

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