Sheffield dad-of-three died from accidental drugs overdose after children taken into care

Daniel Bate, 35, was found dead at the home he had been sharing with his mum Lynne and sister Jennifer in Nether Edge on December 28 last year.

An inquest at Sheffield’s Medico Legal Centre said that a mixture of heroin, cocaine and alcohol had been found in his body during post mortem and toxicology reports.

Coroner Tanyka Rawden heard from Mr Bate’s family how the former chef was found unresponsive at the address in Sheldon Road.

The court heard how Mr Bate, had moved away from Sheffield to live in South Wales with his partner and children in 2015.

However, the couple’s children were taken into care in March last year and Mr Bate, who had been using heroin for a number of years, moved back to Sheffield.

On his return to the city, Mr Bate had been receiving help from substance misuse unit the Fitzwilliam Centre and had been saving up to get a home of his own, the court heard and the family understood that he had stopped using drugs in October of last year.

Mum Lynne said: “I think it all got out of hand when the children were taken into care. It spiralled downwards after that.

"He knew after that we would never have the same contact with them again."

The court heard how Mr Bate had begun taking drugs again last December and he had to be resuscitated in the street on December 17 after an apparent overdose.

On Christmas Day last year, the coroner was told how Mr Bate had shut himself in his room for most of the day.

His mum Lynne said: “He didn’t eat much of his Christmas dinner. He just stayed in his room and said ‘I want to be on my own, mum.’

“He was so upset at not seeing his children over Christmas. He couldn’t see a future.”

But recording a narrative verdict, Mrs Rawden said that she didn’t believe Mr Bate had intended to take his own life and said: “My view is that he had been doing really well and had had a blip before Christmas.

"His body had started getting used to not having heroin inside it and then with it going back into the body, it can have a really dramatic effect.”

"It is terribly sad as he seemed to be doing really well.”

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