13-year-old girl died from sepsis after hospital’s ‘neglect’
A British family has opened up about a devastating tragedy which saw a 13-year-old girl die from sepsis.
Chloe Longster, 13, who was described as a 'fit and healthy, fun-loving teen', was taken to A&E at Kettering General Hospital in Northamptonshire, UK, with pneumonia in November 2022 after complaining of cold and flu symptoms.
Her mum Louise said pain relief was 'delayed' and that in her final hours Chloe was treated with 'contempt' before dying 18 hours later in 'unbearable pain' after developing sepsis.
Louise said she repeatedly asked medics for help but was treated like a 'mum who had been on Google', while Chloe was dismissed as a 'diva teen'.
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She said her daughter, in agony, asked if she was going to die, adding: "It’s haunting that the 13-year-old was the one who was right."
An inquest later found neglect contributed to Chloe’s death, citing a catalogue of missed opportunities that could have saved her.
Assistant coroner Sophie Lomas said 'there were several missed opportunities to recognise Chloe’s deteriorating condition,' and that she might have survived with earlier treatment.
Despite the coroner’s conclusion, the Care Quality Commission issued the trust a fixed penalty notice of £1,250 for failing in its duty of candour, specifically around communication with the family.
The breach related to the trust not contacting them until January 12, 2023, despite a serious incident being declared on December 8, 2022.
Louise explained: "The formal outcome is a small fine. It is heartbreaking to reconcile this with the seriousness of the acts and omissions in Chloe’s case, and with the scale of the investigation that followed.
"Chloe was taken from us when she should have been safe. She wasn’t. After two years of investigation by the Care Quality Commission into the circumstances surrounding Chloe’s death, we have been told there will be no prosecution under Regulation 12, on the basis that the evidential threshold has not been met."
The grieving mother continued: "The CQC has confirmed it identified a breach of the duty of candour (Regulation 22) and has issued the Trust with a fixed penalty notice.
"We understand this relates to the trust’s failure to contact us until January 12, 2023, despite a serious incident being declared on December 8, 2022.
"There were serious incidents and omissions that those present would have been aware of at the time, and of the impact these could have on Chloe’s chance of survival.
"Yet these were not disclosed to us when they occurred. Instead, information emerged slowly over many months.
"Taken together with the wider evidence, this has left our family with deep and unresolved concerns about how events were handled.
"Those present would have understood that this constituted a serious notifiable safety incident."
As for the family, Louise said the process has been 'devastating'.
"At the moment we needed honesty, compassion, and transparency most, we received none of these," she lamented. "Instead, details of Chloe’s care came out gradually, deepening our trauma and leaving us with unanswered questions.
"Throughout the investigation, we were repeatedly reassured that statutory time limits would not be a factor. Those limits expired on November 27, 2025, effectively closing off other legal avenues.
"We would have sought legal advice and considered judicial review."
Speaking of her late daughter, urged: "Chloe is owed transparency and accountability, as does her brother Tom, her cousins, especially Amelia, and our entire family.
"Chloe deserved better, and families deserve honesty and compassion."
She also told the BBC: "The lack of recognition of the gravity of what had happened compounded the sense that Chloe was voiceless, and that neither she nor what happened to her mattered.
"It's maddening they've only been fined for that. It was and still is utterly heartbreaking."
Following the inquest in October 2024, Julie Hogg, group chief nurse for University Hospitals of Northamptonshire, said the hospital 'failed to offer Chloe the care she deserved' and admitted staff 'should have done more', adding improvements had since been made to sepsis management, staffing and communication.
CQC deputy director Carolyn Jenkinson said the fine was 'no way representative of the value of Chloe’s life' but was the maximum allowed for the breach.
She also confirmed the trust had failed to be open and transparent and that any money paid in fines goes to the Treasury.
A spokesman for Kettering General Hospital said it was 'deeply sorry for these failings' and had made changes to improve how information is shared with families.
Rhiannon Ingle