Popular Sheffield dad took his life after years of battling depression and debt problems

Callum James McKayle, aged 33, of Manor Oaks Gardens, died at the Royal Hallamshire Hospital on 27 March. An inquest into his death heard how Callum had taken antidepressant tablets prior to his admission and left a note which “showed intentions” to take his own life.

The hearing, which took place on Monday, 3 August, also heard he had recently split up with his partner and had debt issues which “followed him throughout his life”, sometimes leaving him without enough money for food.

He was found at his home by his mum, Christine, and uncle on the evening of March 26 before being taken to the Northern General Hospital and subsequently transferred to the special infectious disease unit at the Royal Hallamshire Hospital after it was thought he could have Covid-19.

He died shortly after his transfer and was pronounced dead at 7am the following morning. A test for coronavirus came back negative.

A pathologist recorded the cause of death as pulmonary thromboembolus. Callum was found to have “quite severe” ischemic heart disease, which Christine attributed to the large amount of fast food he ate. A GP report said Callum suffered from an eating disorder in the past and was having trouble walking, but there had been an improvement in his mental health.

Christine said: “Callum was quite popular and seemed to be getting his life together when it all went wrong."

Callum was single at the time of his death and had a daughter from a previous relationship. Christine said her son had suffered from depression “for years” but it was “exasperated” 10 years ago when he went to work and returned home to find his partner at the time had left with their baby daughter. His daughter turned 10 at the start of this year, a landmark which was “difficult" for him, his mum said, and left him struggling to work and eat properly.

Sheffield-born Callum was also a popular member of staff at the Department for Education where he had worked since 2017 and developed an intranet system to allow colleagues to communicate with each other. It is now being developed further in his memory, Christine added.

A former Youth Parliament member, he shadowed Sheffield MP David Blunkett and once had breakfast with former Prime Minister Gordon Brown. He would also go round to his mum’s house at Christmas to help her lay the table after her parents passed away. More than 200 friends contacted Callum’s family with their condolences following the news of his death.

Coroner Katy Dickinson concluded: "It was clear to me that from his note and the overdose in his system he intended to do this to himself.”

Callum took the overdose on the sixth anniversary of his grandfather’s death, his mum said.

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