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Suicide mother killed daughter Mother's suicide death 'shocking'
(20 minutes later)
The jury at an inquest into the deaths of a mother and daughter who died in a car fire has recorded verdicts of suicide and unlawful killing. The Home Secretary has described the case of a mother who killed herself and her daughter after police failed to act as "immensely distressing".
Fiona Pilkington, 38, of Barwell, Leicestershire, set fire to her car in October 2007 as she and Francecca Hardwick, 18, sat inside.Fiona Pilkington, 38, of Barwell, Leicestershire, set fire to her car in October 2007 as she and Francecca Hardwick, 18, sat inside.
The jury said the police response had played a part in their deaths. The jury heard they suffered abuse at the hands of a teenage gang.
The Home Secretary Alan Johnson called the case "shocking and immensely distressing". Mr Johnson called the case "shocking" and said police and other agencies had "hard lessons to learn".
The jury criticised a failure to share information between the police and the local council.
The inquest at Loughborough Town Hall heard that Ms Pilkington, her daughter and her son, Anthony, a severe dyslexic, suffered more than 10 years of abuse from a gang of teenagers living on their street in Barwell, Leicestershire.The inquest at Loughborough Town Hall heard that Ms Pilkington, her daughter and her son, Anthony, a severe dyslexic, suffered more than 10 years of abuse from a gang of teenagers living on their street in Barwell, Leicestershire.
'Taunting and abusing'
Ms Pilkington is believed to have poured the contents of a 10-litre can of petrol over clothes in the back seat of the car, and set them alight.Ms Pilkington is believed to have poured the contents of a 10-litre can of petrol over clothes in the back seat of the car, and set them alight.
Mr Johnson said the family "suffered intimidation at the hands of a local gang, culminating in a sustained level of abuse that no family should have to tolerate".Mr Johnson said the family "suffered intimidation at the hands of a local gang, culminating in a sustained level of abuse that no family should have to tolerate".
"Leicestershire Police and their local authority partners have had some hard lessons to learn about past failures, which will be the subject of further investigations," he added."Leicestershire Police and their local authority partners have had some hard lessons to learn about past failures, which will be the subject of further investigations," he added.
Relatives described how Ms Pilkington had complained for years about youths "taunting and abusing" her at her home, but six months before her death had told them "I give up".
Giving evidence, Ms Pilkington's mother Pam Cassell, 72, said a gang up to 16-strong would stand at the front of the house shouting that they could do anything they liked to the family.
The jury found that Ms Pilkington killed herself and her daughter "due to the stress and anxiety regarding her daughter's future, and ongoing anti-social behaviour".