Ben Nelson-Roux: Teen attacked at hostel before death, inquest told

Ben Nelson-Roux was was the youngest resident staff had ever known at the hostel where he died.

A homeless shelter where a vulnerable teenage boy was found dead was the scene of violence and illegal drug use, an inquest has heard.

Ben Nelson-Roux, 16, was assaulted and another person was stabbed at Harrogate's Cavendish House hostel, Northallerton Coroner's Court was told.

Ben, who had been exploited by drugs gangs, was placed at the adult hostel due to a lack of suitable alternatives.

His mother found him dead at the shelter in April 2020.

Jill Hayward, the hostel's warden, told the inquest into Ben's death on Thursday that he was the youngest person she had seen at Cavendish House, where the lower age limit for residents was supposed to be 25.

Residents at the hostel would drink alcohol and take illegal drugs, the court heard.

Ciara Bartlam, the barrister representing Ben's family, asked Miss Hayward whether it would have been easy for Ben to get drugs from other residents.

"I tried my hardest to control drug use on the premises," she replied.

The court heard that Ben was not the victim of the stabbing at the hostel, but he was assaulted on the night that took place which was less than a month before his death.

Ben, 16, was found dead by his mother at a homeless shelter for adults in Harrogate in April 2020.

The teenager had been top of the list for a place at another hostel in Harrogate which was set up to accommodate people aged between 16 and 24, the inquest was told.

But Margarita Gibson, Harrogate Borough Council's housing needs manager, said there was a six-week wait for a place at the East Parade hostel when Ben was first housed at Cavendish House in February 2020.

She told the court she and her colleagues had looked for other accommodation for him - including in North Yorkshire's six other district and borough council areas - but all options had been "exhausted", she said.

They decided to house the teenager in Cavendish House until alternative accommodation came up because there was "a risk Ben could have been street homeless that evening", Ms Gibson said.

She added: "The placement was made with what we call an onward plan to the long term. The aim was for Ben to go into a pathway for accommodation."

The inquest into Ben's death is due to continue on Friday.