Girl, 4, died after bike helmet got caught on branch

A four-year-old girl died after her bike helmet got caught on a branch, an inquest has heard.

Freya Thorpe “potentially slipped” as she climbed a tree after setting her bike aside while playing with a friend in Upper Heyford, Bicester.

The court heard she was suspended from the branch and the helmet strap became “tight against her throat”.

Coroner Darren Salter ruled her death, on 8 September last year, was an accident.

Her father Christopher Thorpe told Oxford Coroner’s Court the family’s lives had been “utterly destroyed” by his daughter’s death.

He said he and his wife loved her “more than life itself”.

The court heard Freya had been playing with another girl of similar age near their homes when the accident happened.

Elisabeth McCall, who was passing by with a child, found Freya and dialled 999 but was unable to remove her from the tree, the court heard.

Paramedic Peter Elsmore said a man was performing CPR on her when he arrived.

The four-year-old died at the John Radcliffe Hospital two days later due to the brain injuries she sustained.

The court heard the area where the accident happened was a “popular place for younger children to play” and was surrounded by 12 houses.

Mr Thorpe said: “I would like to thank anybody that tried to help my little girl.”