Those attending the inquest of a loved one at a coroner's court in Maidstone are fortunate for the support they get.

As well as guidance from the court usher, they will generally have the support of a volunteer from the Coroners’ Courts Support Service to lean on.

An inquest is fortunately something that most of us have to attend only rarely - if ever. But when we do, it can be a bewildering place.

A coroner's court is formally a court of law, and there are certain niceties to be observed - even if the inquest is actually being held in an old classroom, as some inquests at Maidstone have been recently during the Covid crisis.

Then on top of that of course, there is the emotional stress of re-living the death of the loved one - and in some cases hearing the gruesome details of their injuries or illnesses read out in open court.

Families are also often surprised to discover that what feels to them like essentially a very private matter is anything but, with any member of the public entitled by law to attend, and members of the press often present.

So support from a sympathetic and caring volunteer can be a godsend.

Unfortunately, the service is not currently available at all coroners' courts. In fact it is present at only half.

In 2019, UK coroners held 31,284 inquests. The figures for 2020 are not yet available but are expected to be far higher.

An inquest is not carried out for every death, only where there is evidence - or a suspicion - that the death has been unnatural in some way, that might be the result of a car accident, a drug overdose, a suicide, or if the cause of death cannot be readily identified. They are also held if there is some doubt as to the identity of the dead person.

The Coroners' Courts Support Service (CCSS) is calling for extra funding so that it can extend its services across all inquests in England and Wales.

The charity said that families were suffering unnecessary anguish as a result of being "sidelined" from the judicial process.

The CCSS will make BBC Radio 4 appeal tomorrow (Sunday) to appeal for funding.

The appeal will be aired at 7.54am and again at 9.25pm, and will be repeated on Thursday, February 4, at 3.27pm.

Founder Roey Burden OBE said: “From the very moment the CCSS was set up in January 2003, our aim has always been for the service to be available in every Coroners’ Court in the land. The Coroner and Justice Act 2009 put families at the heart of the inquest process, but the legislation has not led to change because of a lack of funding.”

The CCSS currently relies on financial contributions from local authorities, grant makers and private donations.

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