H M Coroners' Service in Hampshire
The Coroner is an independent judicial officer, appointed by the local authority
Coroner's offices
Senior Coroner Mr G A Short
Central and Southampton & New Forest
Castle Hill
The Castle
Winchester SO23 8UL
01962 667884
western-hampshire.coroners@hants.gcsx.gov.uk
Monday to Friday 8am - 4pm
(Southampton, New Forest, Winchester, Eastleigh, Andover, Romsey)
Senior Coroner Mr D Horsley
Portsmouth/South East
The Coroners Court
1 Guildhall Square
Portsmouth PO1 2AJ
023 9268 8326
coroners.office@portsmouthcc.gov.uk
Monday to Friday 9am - 4.30pm
(Portsmouth, Havant, Fareham, Gosport, Petersfield)
Senior Coroner Mr A M Bradley
North East
Goldings
London Road
Basingstoke RG21 4AN
01256 478119
andrew.bradley@hants.gov.uk
Monday to Friday 8.30am - 4.30pm
(Basingstoke, Alton, Fleet, Farnborough, Aldershot)
The Coroner has a duty to investigate deaths which are:
- unnatural or violent
- the cause of death is unknown
- the person died in prison, police custody or other type of state detention
Following the report of a sudden or unexpected death, the Coroner must establish the cause of death. A post mortem examination may be carried out by a pathologist if the Coroner decides that this is necessary.
Post mortem
If a post mortem is necessary, it is usually performed within 3-4 working days after removal. One of the Coroner’s Officers will telephone you to explain the procedure and to advise a likely timescale in this particular case.
Death certificate
In some cases the deceased’s GP may be able to issue a medical cause of death certificate (MCCD), subject to approval from the Coroner. A Coroner's Officer will make contact with the GP in the first instance to make these enquiries.
Funeral arrangements
If you or another member of the immediate family would like to arrange a viewing prior to the funeral, it is recommended that you wait until after the examination and arrange a viewing at your chosen funeral director’s chapel of rest.
If the death is found to be due to natural causes, the Coroner can release the deceased to the chosen funeral directors, once the Coroner’s Office have been informed who has been instructed to take care of arrangements. It is recommended that you instruct funeral directors now, to avoid any delay in release later.
Inquest
If the death is not due to natural causes, an inquest will be necessary, and in such cases the Coroner will provide further details of the procedures which follow.
Inquest lists
Weekly inquests: 24 September to 4 October 2018
Inquest openings: 14 to 20 September 2018
Basingstoke inquests: 24 January 2018
Privacy notice
Your personal data held by the Coroner’s Office as part of Hampshire County Council will be treated in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulations. Your data will only be used to communicate with you in relation to Coronial matters, and provide you with information regarding this. It will not be shared with third parties without your consent.
Your data will be retained as part of the case file for fifteen years for non inquest cases or indefinitely with inquest files.
For jurors, your data will be retained for a maximum of one year from the date of your jury service.
If you have submitted invoices or expenses for remittance, this data will be retained for a maximum of three years from the date of each individual invoice
The legal basis for our use of this information is processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which the controller is subject namely the duty to investigate certain deaths under section 1 of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009.
You have some legal rights in respect of the personal information we collect from you. Please see our Data Protection page for further details.
