Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.Jump to contentIndependentSwipe for next articleIndependent Bulletin homepageDownload our appAllNewsSportCultureLifestyleIzzie AddisonFriday 24 April 2026 15:01 BSTBrooke Wiggins died days before her 13th birthday after she was hit by a falling branch (PA)An inquest heard that work to remove ivy from a beech tree, which later snapped and killed 12-year-old Brooke Wiggins, was never carried out by Surrey County Council despite recommendations.Brooke died in Banstead, Surrey, on 9 November 2024, after falling from a rope swing attached to the tree, which had a concealed crack not visible from ground level.Katherine McDonald, the council's group manager for countryside, stated that the ivy removal was a priority five task, meaning it "should" have been completed within 12 months, but cited competing priorities and the vast number of trees managed by the council.The council has a policy to remove rope swings within seven days and consider advisory notices in areas with multiple swings, but no signs were erected at the accident site after Brooke's death.Following Brooke's death, a "serious incident group" was formed, which decided to 'monolith' the tree, reducing it to a trunk, but did not consult the local community or Brooke's family, deeming it "insensitive".Thank you for registeringPlease refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in