Inquest and the media

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Wondering if anyone is able to advise please. DH's inquest is coming up and whilst I was told it wouldn't be reported in the local papers etc, I have since read that journalists are able to attend and publish details. Is there any way at all I can prevent this from happening?

You can't stop it being reported. Here is the guidance, which seems to suggest that it is only national security that can cause a hearing not to take place in public. Note the reference to the media recognising the need to respect the family's privacy, though it appears to lack teeth.
www.judiciary.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/guidance-no-25-coroners-and-the-media.pdf

Thank you, I had read all this but I was just clutching at straws hoping there would be a way round it. At least I can prepare myself now.

sorry you are going through this a close family member of mine died suddenly a few years ago because of the circumstances there was a police investigation and subsequent court case the papers were awful and very biased but the police told us they had no control over the media

That's awful, sorry you had to go through that. You'd think in this day and age thing kind of thing should be at family discretion. I'm dreading what the papers are going to write and it's dragging everything up for me again. The papers are quite happy to spout bile and twist things. I'm hoping nobody will turn up but think that's unlikely.

Just because journalists are able to attend, it doesn't mean they necessarily will - it's bound to depend on what else goes on that day. But I think it's out of your control and you just have to do what you can to prepare yourself. I'm sorry - it must feel horrible.

I’m a journalist. Normally we attend all inquests but it depends where in the country you are as to how well staffed your local paper is.

Inquests are held in open court and absolutely need to be open to public scrutiny. Imagine if families did have discretion over who attended - you’d get all kinds of things covered up that they didn’t want the public to hear (I’m not saying that’s the case here)

We have to, and do, report sensitively, but factually.

I’m sorry you’re caught up in this. I have experience of an inquest of my family member being covered by our local paper and, while it wasn’t great, I was glad it was heard in open court because there were members of the emergency services who were at fault, and because it was heard publicly, those people had to explain their actions to the coroner (they couldn’t) and action was taken that meant the same thing could not happen again.

I hope it goes as well as it can in the circumstances.