Cornwall authorities cleared on Ben Philpotts death

A full report will be published after the inquests

The death of a young boy in a fire in Cornwall could not have been predicted, a report into the case.

Ben Philpotts, 10, died hours after the fire at his home in Trevarrian, near Newquay, in January 2010. His mother Patricia, 44, also died in the fire.

The prime suspect, Ben's father Harold, 47, was known to Cornwall's mental health authority and died a week later.

A serious case review found "no agency could have foreseen the tragic outcomes".

The report was carried out by the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Safeguarding Children Board (SCB) after the deaths because of concerns about the work of agencies to protect Ben.

The conclusion of the report by the SCB, which includes Cornwall Council, police and mental health services, was released in a statement by Cornwall Council.

It said: "The Serious Case Review into the death of the young person concluded that no agency could have foreseen the tragic outcomes for the young person or his parents or wider family in this case."

The statement said the full report would be published after the inquests into the deaths "to avoid creating further additional distress to the family of the young person". No date has been set for the inquests.

It added: "All the agencies involved took part in the review openly in order to learn any lessons. These will be made available to the public."

No-one from the Philpotts family was available for comment.