Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Alahna Kindred & Adam May

Archie Battersbee will die in hospital after High Court rejects move to hospice

The family of Archie Battersbee have lost their High Court bid to move the schoolboy to a hospice.

Hollie Dance and Paul Battersbee have insisted they should be allowed to choose where the 12-year-old takes his last moments.

The schoolboy has been in hospital since he was found unconscious by his mother in April.

Archie is currently being kept alive by a combination of medical interventions, including ventilation and drug treatments, at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, East London.

Handing down her ruling this morning, Mrs Justice Theis said after considering the wishes of the family and the risks involved in a transfer that "he should remain at the hospital when treatment is withdrawn".

Hollie Dance says she's going to fight as hard as she can for her son (PA)
Archie Battersbee with his mother Hollie Dance (PA)

Ms Dance said after the ruling: "All our wishes as a family have been denied by the authorities.

"We are broken, but we are keeping going, because we love Archie and refuse to give up on him."

Mrs Theis refused permission to appeal against her ruling but the family can pursue a challenge directly with the Court of Appeal.

She granted a stay on the withdrawal of treatment until 2pm today to allow time for an appeal to be made.

It is understood that the family intend to lodge an appeal directly with the Court of Appeal by 1.30pm.

Ms Dance said yesterday it would be "inhumane" if the court refused to grant permission to take Archie to a hospice to "have a dignified passing" and vowed to "fight until the end".

On Wednesday, the Barts Health NHS Trust explained moving Archie to hospice would come with "considerable risk".

They explained because he is in an "unstable condition" there is a risk of even moving him within his hospital bed.

It explains: "This means that in his condition, transfer by ambulance to a completely different setting would most likely hasten the premature deterioration the family wish to avoid, even with full intensive care equipment and staff on the journey. We have explained this to his family."

Ms Dance speaks to the media outside the hospital after the European Court of Human Rights refused an application to postpone the withdrawal of his life support (PA)

The hospital adds that the High Court order from July 15, which has been upheld on an appeal, requires Archie remains at The Royal London Hospital while his treatment is withdrawn.

Christian Concern, a religious group representing the family, said the family had also applied for palliative oxygen to be given to Archie if and when life-support is removed.

Ms Theis today ruled: "I am satisfied that issue should be left to the clinical team on the ground.

"Sadly, the evidence points to it being unlikely he will breathe once treatment is withdrawn due to his severely compromised medical position and the extent of his injuries."

Archie has been in hospital since April (PA)
The boy's parents have been fighting to keep Archie's life support on (Hollie Dance / SWNS)

Ms Dance said: "If Archie is denied oxygen if and when life-support is removed I will continue to give him oxygen. I pray that the High Court will do the right thing.

"If they refuse permission for us to take him to a hospice and for him to receive palliative oxygen it will simply be inhumane and nothing about Archie's 'dignity.'

"The whole system has been stacked against us. Reform must now come through Charlie's Law so that no parents have to go through this."

Hollie Dance (right), speaks to the media outside the Royal London hospital in Whitechapel, east London (PA)

On Wednesday, the family faced another blow after the European Court of Human Rights rejected their 11th-hour application to postpone withdrawing treatment for Archie.

Doctors treating him have said he was brain-stem dead and that continued life-support treatment was not in his best interests.

It follows a dramatic week after Archie's parents were granted a Court of Appeal hearing on Monday after the Government asked judges to urgently consider a request from a UN committee to keep treating Archie while it reviews his case.

Ms Dance claimed the hospital previously told them they would be able to move Archie to a hospice but then they "just totally went back on their word".

She said their ordeal has been "absolutely heartbreaking" and that she does not believe the hospital will allow them to take him to a hospice to die.

Speaking to Times Radio on Thursday, she said: "It's absolutely heartbreaking. It's really taking its toll."

Yesterday morning, Attorney General Suella Braverman said the case was an "incredibly heartbreaking situation" but insisted the courts had "reached the right decision".

This week, Archie's life support was due to be switched off on Monday, but the Court of Appeal hearing didn't conclude until late afternoon.

The three judges considering the matter then refused to postpone the withdrawal of treatment beyond midday on Tuesday.

Archie Battersbee, 12, suffered a catastrophic brain injury (PA)

On Tuesday, Ms Dance and Mr Battersbee dramatically submitted an appeal to the Supreme Court asking for treatment to continue while the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) - and was denied.

On Wednesday, the family submitted an 11th-hour application to the European Court of Human Rights - but it was rejected.

The High Court had previously found that Archie can't feel pain and so his current treatment regime does not cause him any pain or distress.

Damage to his spinal cord could also prevent his breathing independently regardless of any damage to his brain, it's claimed.

It is believed Archie may have been taking part in the dangerous "blackout" social media craze, where people choke themselves until they pass out at the time of the accident.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.