Inquest concluded into the death of Nottinghamshire Police sergeant Graham Saville
An inquest concluded that a sergeant’s death was ‘wholly preventable’, after police failures left him fatally exposed to danger on the railway.
Sergeant Graham Saville was attempting to save a person in distress, referred to at the inquest as Patient C, on the railway line near Hollowdyke Lane, Balderton, on August 24, 2023, when he was struck by a train travelling 125mph.
The inquest, being held at Nottingham Council House, heard that Graham died at Queen’s Medical Centre, Nottingham five days later, on August 29.
Concluding the inquest at Nottingham on Friday, Coroner Laurinda Bower found that Nottinghamshire Police failed to identify the obvious risk of death posed to officers entering a live railway line.
Despite receiving national railway safety guidance in 2017, 2021 and 2022, the force did not implement a safe system of work or provide specific training on railway hazards to officers or control room staff.
In recording a narrative verdict, Mrs Bower said: “Graham’s death from injuries sustained in a collision with a high-speed passenger train while in the execution of his duties as a police officer was probably more than minimally contributed to by his employer’s failure to have in place a safe system of risk assessment, training and guidance dissemination on the risks associated with incidents on or near the railway line.”
The inquest heard that officers responding to the incident were left to apply their own risk assessments to situations.
The 2021 generic policing risk assessment failed to identify the fatal risk of collision with a train, focusing instead on minor hazards such as slips and trips.
By contrast, risks associated with water and road hazards were properly identified and addressed through specific training and systems.
Control room staff were not trained on how to support officers at railway incidents or how and when to contact Network Rail.
On the evening of August 24, multiple requests from officers at the scene for urgent contact with Network Rail were met with ‘misleading’ information.
A call was only placed moments before the collision, which the coroner agreed was “too late”.
An earlier call would probably have allowed Network Rail to place a caution on the line, slowing trains and giving Graham time to act, the inquest was told.
A senior officer’s order not to enter the tracks came just two seconds before the collision that led to Graham’s death five days later.
“There were multiple missed opportunities for his employer to have detected these shortcomings and to have remedied the same prior to his death,” said Ms Bower.
She added: “The failures to do so meant that Graham died what was a wholly preventable death.”
The inquest was told that since Graham’s death, Nottinghamshire Police has changed the way it operates its systems, introducing mandatory railway-specific training and clear protocols.
Officers must not enter the railway until it has been declared safe by Network Rail, except in exceptional circumstances where immediate action is necessary to save life.
The coroner described the force’s response since Graham’s death as a “night and day” difference compared to its position before August 2023.
Mrs Bower added that following this change, no prevention of future deaths report was needed.
Graham was described during proceedings as a brave and dedicated officer who gave his life while trying to protect others.
At the end of the inquest, Graham’s wife, Joanne Saville thanked the coroner for such as thorough inquest as she feared it would be a tick box exercise.
“We have the full facts and answers to our questions, and this is important to us not only now but for the future, if, when and should our children wish to know everything.”
Mrs Bower concluded by saying that both Joanne and Graham deserved the truth.
After the conclusion, Nottinghamshire Police’s Temporary Chief Constable Steve Cooper said: “What happened on August 24 continues to affect us all.
“Graham has been described by his colleagues as dependable, respected, compassionate and supportive. These qualities made him an excellent police officer.
“We would like to again express our thanks to the critical care team at the Queen’s Medical Centre, his colleagues, the ambulance crew that attended and the policing family for their kind support and all they have done for Graham.
“As a force we will continue to ensure that Graham, his service and sacrifice is never forgotten.”
Graham had started as a response sergeant based at Newark Police Station just a short time before his death.
He started his career with the Metropolitan Police in 2013, before transferring to Nottinghamshire Police in February 2017, spending the majority of his career as a response officer at Radford Road Police Station.
Chief Superintendent Claire Rukas, force lead for corporate services, added: “The Health and Safety Executive carried out an investigation into our force systems and practice following Graham’s death.
“We have taken their investigation extremely seriously. Staff safety is paramount, and we have therefore swiftly addressed the important points they have raised.
“This has included updating our practices and offering further training to our workforce about the dangers of entering railway lines.
“Throughout the inquest, we have deployed a force representative to listen carefully to the inquest and all concerns raised.
“We have been fully invested in this process because we want to make sure we operate in the safest way possible.
“We have just received the coroner’s findings and will reflect on all the points she has raised. We will take all the necessary steps to keep the public and our officers safe.
“We know the full impact Graham’s death has caused across the whole organisation and our thoughts continue to be with his family and friends.”
