A grieving son has lost his High Court battle for a jury inquest after his mother died in a house fire, surrounded by animal faeces and piles of rubbish.

Harold Hill resident Rosslyn Wolff’s death was “harrowing” and “avoidable”, Mrs Justice Collins Rice has ruled, but there were no failings severe enough to count as a human rights breach.

Rosslyn, 74, described in court as a “hoarder”, died when a discarded cigarette set light to her living room in Myrtle Road on January 11, 2022.

In the preceding months she had been deemed at risk of harm from a fire and in need of a fire safety assessment at her home, which was never carried out.

In a ruling handed down on Thursday, March 28, Mrs Collins Rice found there had been an identified risk to Rosslyn’s life.

But, she concluded: “The tragic circumstances of her death, and that natural dismay that this was, on at least some level, an avoidable disaster befalling an unfortunate and perhaps disadvantaged individual, do not mean it was one which it was the duty of the state to prevent.”

The High Court case was brought by Rosslyn’s son Gary Parkin after the East London Coroner’s Court refused to grant a jury inquest to investigate potential failures by Havering Council and the NHS.

He said he has a meeting with his lawyer next week to discuss their options.

"I intend to take this further," he said. "If my lawyer says an appeal is viable, I will appeal. I refuse to give up the fight."

Romford Recorder: Rosslyn Wolff's home was full of rotting dog faeces and rubbish. The conditions were so unsanitary that her dog was taken away - yet she was left living in the same conditions on grounds that she had mental capacityRosslyn Wolff's home was full of rotting dog faeces and rubbish. The conditions were so unsanitary that her dog was taken away - yet she was left living in the same conditions on grounds that she had mental capacity (Image: Gary Parkin)

Relatives had raised repeated concerns with the council and mental health trust NELFT (North East London Foundation NHS Trust) that Rosslyn was suffering from mental health problems and incapable of making sound decisions about her own health.

She lived in squalor, refusing all help and, in the weeks before the fatal fire, was sectioned under the Mental Health Act after going missing and being found in a confused state by police.

But her erratic behaviour was chalked up to hypoglycaemic attacks and she was deemed to have decision-making capacity – despite NELFT later admitting in open court that she was not given a full capacity test.

Romford Recorder: Rosslyn Wolff, 74, a former paralegal, was found dead after a fire broke out at her home in Myrtle Road, Harold Hill, in January 2022. Her family had been raising concerns for years about her mental capacityRosslyn Wolff, 74, a former paralegal, was found dead after a fire broke out at her home in Myrtle Road, Harold Hill, in January 2022. Her family had been raising concerns for years about her mental capacity (Image: Gary Parkin)

“She was plainly a risk to herself,” wrote Mrs Collins Rice. “There is evidence that she was to a degree vulnerable.

“But the fact that her behaviours, by general societal norms, would be labelled unusual, unattractive, unwise or unreasonable – or even disorderly – is neither itself inconsistent with their being autonomous, nor indicative that her autonomy was materially compromised.”

NELFT has admitted failings in its handling of Rosslyn's case, but has insisted in court hearings that they were all "individual" failings, not "systemic". 

Mrs Collins Rice wrote: “Mrs Wolff died in a harrowing set of circumstances. Mr Parkin’s quest to get to the bottom of all the circumstances, including whether her death was avoidable, and whether others might be to blame, is entirely understandable.”

But, she wrote: “The evidence is that Mrs Wolff was a fiercely independent lady of sound mind who did not want well-intentioned health and social work professionals judging or interfering with a lifestyle she was well aware was a risky one."

Romford Recorder: Gary Parkin said he would appeal against Mrs Justice Collins Rice's decision Gary Parkin said he would appeal against Mrs Justice Collins Rice's decision (Image: Charles Thomson)

“That does not necessarily mean that the matters about which Mr Parkin is concerned cannot be addressed by other means,” the judge added.

“Issues of potential shortcomings or failings leading up to Mrs Wolff’s death can be investigated in the context of a traditional inquest and scrutinised if appropriate in a prevention of future deaths report.

“That can include identification of neglect, if any. So this is not necessarily the end of the road for pursuing his concerns.”

Mr Parkin welcomed the judge's description of his mother's death as "avoidable".

"That's all I've ever wanted, to be blunt, because it was avoidable," he said. "For her to say that, I feel vindicated in that respect."