A HGV driver had no chance of stopping when a grandmother deliberately stepped into his path, an inquest heard today (Tues).

Mavis Brason, 68, of Well Grove, Hove Edge, was stood outside the One Stop Shop on Granny Hall Lane, Brighouse, on June 19 for up to two hours before stepping directly into the path of the lorry driven by Chris Parkinson.

In a statement by her husband Robert read out at Bradford Coroner’s Court he said his wife of 45 years had been suffering from depression.

He said that on the morning of her death they had some breakfast and he got ready to see one of the couple’s two daughters.

When he returned he found the door key under a brick, the door was locked and there was a note telling him she loved him and asking him to look after their cat.

Concerned, he looked at her iPad and discovered she had been researching ways to end her life. He said: “I have no idea why she wanted to do this.”

In a statement Paula Niedzialkowski said she was walking down Halifax Road at 11.45am when she noticed a lady and said she remembered thinking that she hoped she got across the road safely.

She added: “I got the impression that she was indecisive, moving back and forward.

"Then the lady stepped out straight in front of it. I said: “Oh my God! There was the screech of the tyres and a sickening thud.

“The man did not stand a chance of stopping.”

Marjorie Jaques, who was bed making, caught the incident out of her bedroom window.

Bradford Magistrates' Court where inquests are held at Bradford Coroner's Court inside the complex

In a statement she said: “I saw her charge out into the road. I shouted: ‘No, no, don’t, stop,” even though I knew she couldn’t hear me. I heard a loud bang.”

The court heard that she was taken to Leeds General Infirmary but medics were unable to save her and she was pronounced dead at 1.20pm.

Mrs Brason’s GP Jon Malone said in a statement that there had been a previous incident where she had gone to a bridge in circumstances that worried her family and he noted that her daughter “was of the view that she needed help.”

He added that he saw her in February but “she denied emphatically any self-harm and didn’t want to be referred” to the Crisis team.

Det Sgt Damon Walker of Calderdale CID said it was thought she had, unbeknown to her husband, taken a taxi to Granny Hall Lane.

He said there was CCTV footage of her waiting to cross the road. He said: “It shows her stood by the pavement. She is there for a good five to 10 minutes. She looked anxious.”

He added that the “clearly distressed” lorry driver Mr Parkinson was interviewed by police.

Senior coroner Martin Fleming asked Det Sgt Walker: “As he approached the bollards she stepped out into the road?” The officer replied: “Yes”.

He told the court that the deceased was seen carrying a plastic bag which contained a letter written about ending her life.

Mr Fleming said it was “a desperately sad case.” He said the retired classroom assistant “had a history of depression and anxiety.

She was prescribed medication but didn’t want to take it.”

He exonerated Mr Parkinson who attended the hearing saying: “Mr Parkinson has to live with this. There’s no fault on your part here.”

The court heard that the cause of death was due to extensive skull fracture and head injuries.

Giving a narrative conclusion he said: “On 19 June 2018 Mavis Brason intended to take her own life.”