Bereaved families on the Isle of Wight are now waiting an average of 77 weeks for inquests to conclude – the worst delay anywhere in England and Wales, despite a dramatic increase in the number of completed cases.
New Ministry of Justice statistics reveal the Isle of Wight Coroner’s Service completed 277 inquest conclusions in 2025 compared to just 38 in 2024 – an increase of more than 600%. However, despite the sharp rise in completed cases, delays have continued to worsen.
The average time taken to process an inquest rose again from 76 weeks in 2024 to 77 weeks in 2025. By comparison, the England and Wales average remained stable at 31 weeks.
The figures mean families are waiting well over 18 months for answers surrounding the deaths of loved ones. In some cases, families are waiting up to 6 years.
The statistics raise fresh questions about the scale of the Island’s coronial backlog and whether years of intervention measures are having any meaningful impact.
A major increase in completed inquests would be expected to reduce waiting times. Instead, the Isle of Wight’s delays increased further, suggesting either a substantial hidden backlog remains, or the service continues struggling operationally despite attempts to improve performance.
The latest data emerges after years of mounting criticism surrounding the Coroner’s Office, including a formal judicial warning, a 61-point recovery plan and claims from senior leaders that the service was ‘not fit for purpose’.
Previous scrutiny has also focused on staffing instability within the service, including revelations that 6 out of 7 newly recruited staff members quit and concerns that assistant coroners appointed over 5 years ago were not being fully utilised despite growing delays.
Although the number of deaths reported to the Coroner fell by 19% – from 679 in 2024 to 553 in 2025 – the number of inquests opened rose by 24%, increasing from 123 to 153.
At the same time, the Isle of Wight recorded one of the highest post-mortem rates in the country. A total of 387 post-mortems were carried out in 2025, accounting for 70% of all reported deaths – the 4th highest rate nationally.
The figures suggest the cases being dealt with by the service are becoming increasingly complex despite fewer overall deaths being reported.
Of the 277 conclusions recorded in 2025, 97 were classified as accident or misadventure, 37 were drug or alcohol-related, 17 were suicides, 11 involved road traffic collisions and 10 related to industrial disease or death. Combined, external and non-natural causes accounted for more than 60% of all conclusions.
The statistics also reveal that no Prevention of Future Deaths Reports were issued on the Isle of Wight in 2023, 2024 or 2025. Such reports are issued by coroners where action could help prevent similar deaths from occurring in future. Nationally, hundreds of Prevention of Future Deaths reports are issued each year by coroners across England and Wales.
The absence of any reports is likely to raise eyebrows given the Island recorded hundreds of concluded inquests over the same period, including dozens linked to drugs, alcohol, suicide, accidents and road traffic collisions.
Pressure continues to mount for Senior Coroner Caroline Summeray, with former Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick last year stating ‘enough is enough’ and warned standards must improve or the Coroner should resign.
Separately, a judicial investigation resulted in Mrs Summeray being handed a formal warning as concerns over the service deepened further.
Despite recovery plans, recruitment efforts and increased scrutiny, the latest national figures indicate the Isle of Wight remains a significant outlier compared to the rest of England and Wales.
Why hasn’t headquarters not sacked this woman or held her to account ? She is not fit to do this job & has failed surely everyone can see this fact ???
Perk of working for the public sector
employees are UNACCOUNTABLE!
“warned standards must improve or the Coroner should resign.”
No, the Coroner should be sacked.
Doesn’t surprise me at all, all island services are
3rd world.
Look at the NHS patients have to pay to go to the
mainland for treatment etc etc
It’s got to be asked, why is she still there?
It’s like the criminal justice as a whole, there is no deterrent for bad performance. The coroner can just keep under performing.
It would be a good start to have a local coroner (someone who lives on the Island) and not someone who stays in a very expensive hotel during the week. No doubt the hotel is happy about it.
There is a hotel within walking distance of the court that could be used if one must be used.
She doesn’t look the brightest spark does she.
Very dangerous women, above the law. Nothing sticks, made of teflon !
Maybe she Works part-time cant get out of bed in the morning and likes long lunch breaks also finishes work about 4:30 I’d like to see her a payslip
Majority of public sector employees are still shirking
from home.
Since the pandemic they are work shy!, not that their
work output was ever up to much before the pandemic.
Mmmm, Caroline Sumeray was the Coroner who conducted an Inquest, via MS Teams, and not in person, due to the COVID lockdown.
At the crucial moment of the inquiry, she disappeared online. We later found that she forgot to bring a power cable for her laptop to the office where she was working. I understand issues can arise. If she were based in an office on the mainland, I would have expected power cables for laptops to be available.
I never got to hear answers to my questions. Or any replies to emails thereafter.
While living on the mainland for a role on the Island shouldn’t be an issue, I often read comments that inquiries are delayed because people can’t get to the Island.
I see that Caroline Sumeray works part-time in the role. Given the high number of inquests that go unheard, wouldn’t it be paramount that whoever is appointed be offered a full-time contract? Furthermore, the appointed individual lives on the Island.
Robert Jenrick last year stated ‘enough is enough’ and warned standards must improve or the Coroner should resign. There is plenty of evidence that Caroline Sumeray has failed families on the Island due to her lack of performance. Surely, if she is not fit to conduct her role while in office, she ought to be sacked rather than wait for her resignation?
It’s devastating to wait for an inquest, especially when the Coroner fails to meet the basics. Surely, the current MPs for the Island ought to raise the issue with Parliament?
Any other employee would have been sacked for incompetence. So, how is it that she is still in this post?
Jenrick stole my Catchphrase
Enough is Enough
Lol
The Isle of Wight council don’t employ her, so can’t sack her. Their hands are tied.
Island Echo – have you asked under the Freedom of Information Act how much this Coroner is paid?
If you have not, then please ask – we would like to know.
According to the IW Observer, 5 July 2025, the Isle of Wight Coroner, Caroline Sumeray, was reported to have a salary range up to £148,000, with some reports indicating a salary between £130,000 and £144,000.
Well, Mr Lammy? Are you concerned about this? You are the Lord Chancellor and therefore responsible for appointing (and presumably removing) judicial office holders.
Whilst not a fan of Ms Sumeray (93 weeks for my Father’s inquest and she was rude, intimidating and, quite frankly, horrible) UK Coroner’s are paid a pittance compared to what they can earn in the private sector. So why would any KC leave a lucrative job to be one?
Pay peanuts, get monkey’s
Is this woman untouchable? In any private company she would have been dismissed long ago!!
Another useless person in charge on big money ..