Accident verdict on ski tragedy mum
APOPULAR mum and dedicated charity worker died after crashing into a tree while on a skiing holiday with her sons, an inquest was told.
Anne Clayton’s sons watched in horror as she went off down the slopes at their French Alps resort but lost control and veered off piste before colliding with a tree.
The brothers, Stephen and Andrew, ran to help their mum, 54, an experienced skier from Poynton, and a ski instructor nearby called for assistance, but after attempts to resuscitate Mrs Clayton she was pronounced dead at the scene.
An inquest into her death at Stockport Coroner’s Court heard that she was a ‘remarkable’ woman who did a lot for charity.
Coroner Joanne Kearsley said: “I can make no other conclusion than your mum died as a result of accidental death doing something she enjoyed.
“She does seem like a remarkable lady very much involved in so many things with her voluntary work.
“It’s really tragic that she died in this way.”
The family were on the second day of their holiday at the resort when the accident happened, on June 1 this year.
Stephen told the inquest they stopped to take some pictures before heading off down the slope.
He told the inquest his mum had skied on the route on previous holidays.
He said: “She wanted to take a different route than us and meet us at the bottom.
“She went on ahead and we saw her go over powdery snow and off the side.
“We went over to her and saw she had collided with a tree.
“There was an instructor nearby who rang for help.”
Mrs Clayton was born in Stockport and went to Hillcrest Grammar School. She trained as a nurse and worked at Stepping Hill and The Alexandra Hospital.
She met her husband Bob playing badminton, a sport she continued to enjoy, and they married in 1992 before moving to Poynton in 1999. Bob sadly died 12 years ago and Anne dedicated herself to her charity work. She volunteered with charities including Street Angels in Manchester which helps vulnerable people at night.
A pathologist’s report said the impact caused fractured ribs and internal bleeding. The coroner said she died as a result of an accident.