An inquest into the death of 17-year-old Sophie Read has heard that police should have been told when she failed to return to council accommodation.

The teenager, originally from Worthing, stayed at accommodation in Brighton provided by West Sussex County Council for less than a month before her death and went missing from care seven times.

On the night she died, police were not informed of her disappearance, despite an upgraded safety plan being in place.

The court also heard that West Sussex County Council had failed to investigate her death or contact the bereaved family.

Karen Henderson, the Assistant Coroner for Brighton and Hove, was told that in the four weeks before her death, the teenager had been living in accommodation in Brighton managed by Own Life, which had been commissioned by West Sussex County Council to house children in the authority’s care.

She had been placed on an 11pm curfew at the property as part of a safety plan drawn up by her social worker, Clare Harvey, who described Sophie in court as a “ray of sunshine” and “very likeable”.

“She was a very, very friendly girl,” said Mrs Harvey. “She was delightful. She had completed her GCSEs and was working in a [children’s] nursery.”

The court was told that in early 2020 Sophie faced a series of setbacks in her life, and her care plan was upgraded.

On February 24, the teenager had been smoking in her room and playing loud music before leaving for the day, the court heard.

READ MORE: Teenager died after taking cocktail of alcohol, heroin and cocaine

Gary Lockwood, manager of the Own Life property, told the inquest that a support worker who was working a night shift that evening “unfortunately” did not adhere to the correct procedure when the teenager failed to return home at 11pm.

“The police should have been informed that Sophie was missing,” said Mr Lockwood, who added that informing the police was the responsibilty of Own Life.

In 2019, an Ofsted inspection into children’s services at West Sussex County Council judged its overall effectiveness to have “serious and widespread weaknesses”. A follow-up report in 2020, however, stated that “positive progress” had been made.

Giving evidence at the inquest, Shelley Dichello, commissioning manager for children’s services at West Sussex County Council, said the council did not investigate Sophie’s death and had no contact with the family.

“I feel really sad about that, disappointed and concerned, and that must never happen again,” she said.

In a statement read to the inquest, a friend said the teenager's late father had been a drug addict.

Sophie – who was described in court as “extremely vulnerable and complex” – died on February 25, 2020, after taking a cocktail of alcohol, heroin and cocaine following a night in an Airbnb flat in St Aubyns, Hove with her boyfriend Reis Forde.

She had a telephone conversation with her friend in the early hours of February 25 after taking the heroin, the inquest heard.

The inquest, which is being held at Sussex Cricket Ground, is due to conclude today.