Inquest into death of Southend's Archie Battersbee to resume today

The 12 year old had his life support withdrawn on August 6 after his parents Hollie Dance and Paul Battersbee failed in bids to overturn a High Court ruling that doctors could lawfully do so.

Doctors treating Archie at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, east London, thought he was brain-stem dead and said continued life-support treatment was not in his best interests.

Ms Dance thinks her son may have been taking part in an online challenge before he was found unconscious.

The inquest is set to resume this morning at Essex Coroners Court in Chelmsford. 

His mum Hollie Dance, 47, from Southend has previously spoken out about discovering vile messages sent to her son.

According to the Guardian, Archie was sent both voice and text messages on WhatsApp for months before his death which encouraged him to kill himself. 

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During an initial inquest in November last year, the coroner heard that police found messages on his phone reflecting a "very low mood". 

In November, Essex’s senior coroner Lincoln Brookes, presiding over a pre-inquest review hearing in Chelmsford on Tuesday, said there was “no evidence at this stage to substantiate the concern”.

He also heard an update from an Essex Police officer, following a download of Archie’s phone, which found messages reflecting what Mr Brookes described as “very low mood”.

Ms Dance was in court while Mr Battersbee listened into proceedings online.