THE death of teenage prisoner who was found hanged in his cell came as a shock to both staff and fellow inmates, an inquest heard today.

Ryan Gorton had been dead several hours before he was discovered by officers at Deerbolt Young Offenders’ Institute at Startforth, near Barnard Castle, County Durham, on May 2 last year.

He was only the second person to die at the prison since it opened in 1973 - the other being due to a heart condition years earlier.

On the second day of the inquest at Crook Coroner’s Court today, a jury heard how the youngster had a history of self-harm and had been moved wings just three days earlier after he launched pool balls at his fellow inmates but was not considered to be at risk of suicide.

The 19-year-old arrived at the prison in August 2015 and had been put on four Assessment Care and Custody and Teamwork (ACT) documents which were opened if staff raised any concerns about a prisoner.

Intervention action included different levels of observation leading up to a round-the-clock watch.

Heather Spark, of the prison’s mental health service, was Gorton’s key worker during that time and said the ACTs had been opened due to him self-harming which at one point included cutting his earlobes off.

She said the self-harming was always “reactive” to incidents but never suspected he would commit suicide.

Following the ‘pool ball incident’ on April 28; Gorton was found guilty of assault by governors and sentenced to four days’ on the segregation wing.

However, when assessed by general nurse, Janet Tray, she decided there was a risk his mental health would “deteriorate significantly” and instead he was moved to a different wing and had his privileges reduced.

Being the bank holiday weekend, staff did not enforce the punishment fully and prison officer, Tracy Quinn, said he “seemed quite happy”.

It was at 6am on the bank holiday Monday that operational support officer, Anthony Stephenson, discovered Gorton hanging in his cell.

The alarm was raised and staff rushed to the cell and cut him down but it was too late.

Gorton – who was originally from Bolton – had written a letter to his mother, Helen Gorton, which was discovered in the cell and being read out to jurors.

It talked about plans for a visit and if his mother could sent him some books and other items.

He also described being put “on basic” for two weeks saying it was “boring” but “not that bad”.

Police statements from other inmates were also read out and expressed their shock at Gorton’s death while his mother also gave a statement saying she was due to visit on May 6 and had never been aware of any self-harming issues.

She said her son was six years behind in his development which meant he was “more like a young teenager than someone approaching his 20s” but was always affectionate and reassured her he was OK.

The youngster was serving a four year sentence for causing grievous bodily harm with intent and possession of a knife after stabbing a fellow pupil at a learning centre in 2015.

The inquest will continue tomorrow.