Louie Isaac Webster, from Wigan, suffered fatal injuries after entering a fenced-off arena while his mother briefly went to their car to fetch him a drink, an inquest heard.

An eight-year-old boy died after being kicked in the head by a horse at a livery centre in Warrington, Cheshire, after entering a fenced-off arena while his mother was away for a few minutes.

Louie Isaac Webster was visiting The Beeches Livery Centre with his mother, Rebecca Webster, and his teenage sister, whose horse was kept at the stables, when the fatal incident occurred.

The inquest at Cheshire Coroner’s Court heard that Louie had complained of being thirsty. His mother asked him to sit on a bench near the stables while she walked to their car to get him a drink.

She had been gone for only a few minutes when the incident happened.

View Image

An air ambulance landed at the scene(Image: Liverpool Echo)

Mother Heard Her Daughter’s Panicked Shouts

Coroner Victoria Davies told the hearing that Rebecca had described the walk to the car as a short distance of around 15 to 20 paces. However, a horse box obstructed her view of the yard.

While she was at the vehicle, she suddenly heard her daughter shouting at Louie to “get out”, followed by a panicked cry for her mother.

Detective Inspector Joanna Morgan, who led the investigation into Louie’s death, said CCTV footage from the car park showed the teenager running towards her mother and another person who used the livery centre. She told them that Louie had been kicked by the horse.

The three rushed back to the arena, where they found the eight-year-old lying unresponsive near the fence.

How Louie Entered the Horse’s Arena

During the inquest, police evidence revealed that Louie had not remained on the bench as his mother had instructed.

According to his sister’s account, he had walked towards the arena and entered through a gap in the fencing.

At the time, she had stopped riding and was sitting on the horse while using her mobile phone.

Louie approached the animal and stroked its belly. The horse became frightened and kicked out with its hind legs, striking the boy in the head.

His sister told police that Louie had previously enjoyed stroking the belly of one of two horses she had owned before.

She said she had warned him about the horse involved in the incident because it was an ex-racehorse. However, she believed he might not have fully understood the warning.

Family Had Not Previously Taken Louie to the Stables

The hearing also heard that Louie’s sister was experienced and confident around horses and had been using The Beeches Livery Centre for approximately three months.

Louie, however, had not visited the facility before.

His behaviour had been described as challenging due to suspected attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), according to evidence reported by the Liverpool Echo.

The inquest considered the circumstances that led to Louie entering the arena and approaching the horse while his mother was away from the immediate area.

Emergency Crews Tried to Save the Eight-Year-Old

After Louie was discovered, several people at the livery centre began performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) while emergency services were called.

Both air and land ambulances attended the scene. Louie was transported by road to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital while suffering a cardiac arrest.

Despite the efforts of medical staff, he could not be revived and was pronounced dead at 7.45pm.

Coroner Records Accidental Death

Following the evidence presented at the hearing, Coroner Victoria Davies concluded that Louie’s death was accidental.

The inquest established that the eight-year-old had entered the arena through a gap in the fencing and approached the horse, which reacted by kicking him.

Louie’s death has left his family facing the loss of a young child following a sudden incident at a place his sister had regularly visited with her horse.

The coroner’s conclusion formally recorded the death as accidental.