Death of boy killed in crash an accident - coroner

William Brown's death was ruled an "accident" at Maidstone Coroner's Court on Friday

The death of a seven-year-old boy who was hit by a van and a car on a busy A road was a "tragic accident", a coroner has ruled.

William Brown had crossed the A259 Sandgate esplanade in Folkestone to fetch a football shortly before he was struck, an inquest into his death heard.

The boy's cause of death last December was "severe head injuries", area coroner Katrina Hepburn told Maidstone Coroner's Court.

Stewart Powell, 49, from Dunstall Gardens, St Mary's Bay, who was driving the van, pleaded guilty to leaving the scene and driving without valid insurance in July.

William was playing football in his front garden and was assumed to have crossed the road to fetch the ball from the esplanade moments before he was hit, according to PC Darren Chapman.

The boy had crossed the road to retrieve the ball a second time and when returning to his garden he was hit by a grey Peugeot van and thrown into the path of a red Citroen, the police officer said.

He died at the scene of the crash on 6 December at 18:18 BST after suffering catastrophic injuries.

'Exceptionally tragic'

Mrs Clayton, the driver of the Citroen, stopped and left her children in the car to call 999, the court heard.

PC Chapman said: "She did not see William prior to the collision. She thought she had struck a dog."

Mr Powell went home due to "shock" and the following day broke down and called the police after his partner mentioned the crash, the court heard.

In July, he was handed a 14-week sentence suspended for 12 months.

The coroner said this was an exceptionally tragic case but there is no evidence that dangerous driving contributed.