WARNING: Distressing details. Semina Halliwell’s mum broke down in tears as she told how her daughter was “destroyed mentally and physically”
Semina Halliwell, 12, from Southport, died on June 12 2021(Image: Liverpool Echo)
The mum of a girl who was allegedly groomed and raped by an older boy months before she took her own life broke down in tears as she told how her daughter was “destroyed mentally and physically”.
Semina Halliwell, from Southport, was just 12 years old when she died at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital on June 12 2021, three days after taking an overdose of prescription tablets. An inquest into her death opened today (Monday, January 13) at Bootle Town Hall with coroner Johanna Thompson.
The court was told Semina, 12, overdosed on prescription pills shortly after walking out of a police interview at her Southport home, telling mum Rachel that she had “had enough”. The Y7 Stanley High School pupil had allegedly suffered from months of bullying and harassment after being sexually abused by an older boy in January 2021.
At her inquest today, mum Rachel Halliwell said contact between her daughter and the boy had begun in summer 2020, when Semina was just 11 years old. She said: “She was under a lot of pressure.
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“She told me that she tried to put him off several occasions, making excuses up to not meet. He tried different tactics, started to be nasty but that didn’t work so he started to be nice again. I could see from their messages that she was terrified when the act happened – just before it.”
Breaking down in tears, she said her daughter had confided in her that the boy – who was not named in court – had raped her. She said: “She said he took her into the woods and he sat her on a tree stump and he took his trousers down… She said she kept saying no.
“She said she was scared. She said it was horrible. It destroyed her. It destroyed her mentally, physically. She changed into a different person.
“She felt bad about herself. She looked bad. She thought bad things about herself. She felt used. Of course to keep it a secret from everybody meant she wasn’t allowed to speak about it. It just destroyed her completely.”
Ms Halliwell said Semina, who was diagnosed with autism, had previously been “a happy little girl (with a) big friendship group”, “very popular at school” and “very popular with her teachers”. But this changed in 2020 around the time her daughter moved from primary to secondary school.
Semina Halliwell(Image: Rachel Halliwell)
She said: “She started to self harm. She became very withdrawn and very sad.” She said she reached out to CAMHS, the mental health support service for children, adding: “She didn’t tell me about it. She used to hide it from me.
“She’d put tights on so I couldn’t see her legs and the tops of her arms were covered. But eventually I saw. This was completely out of character for Semina. We had gone from a happy little girl to a girl who was self harming.
“I didn’t even know how she’d know to even do that. And she was so sad. I tried to talk to her many times and ask ‘what’s making you so unhappy? Something must have happened’.”
She said her daughter frequently used social media such as Snapchat and Tiktok to keep up with her friends during the Covid-19 lockdown, and that she was not aware of what Semina was doing when she was alone in her room.
Mental health support
Helplines and support groups
The following are helplines and support networks for people to talk to, mostly listed on the NHS Choices website
- Samaritans (116 123) operates a 24-hour service available every day of the year. If you prefer to write down how you’re feeling, or if you’re worried about being overheard on the phone, you can email Samaritans at jo@samaritans.org.
- CALM Campaign Against Living Miserably (0800 58 58 58) is a leading movement against suicide. It runs a UK helpline and webchat from 5pm to midnight 365 days a year for anyone who has hit a wall for any reason, who need to talk or find information and support.
- PANDAS (0808 1961 776) runs a free helpline and offers a support service for people who may be suffering with perinatal mental illness, including prenatal (antenatal) and postnatal depression plus support for their family or network.
- Childline (0800 1111) runs a helpline for children and young people in the UK. Calls are free and the number won’t show up on your phone bill.
- PAPYRUS (0800 068 41 41) is an organisation supporting teenagers and young adults who are feeling suicidal.
- Mind (0300 123 3393) is a charity providing advice and support to empower anyone experiencing a mental health problem. They campaign to improve services, raise awareness and promote understanding.
- Students Against Depression is a website for students who are depressed, have a low mood or are having suicidal thoughts.
- Bullying UK is a website for both children and adults affected by bullying.
- Amparo provides emotional and practical support for anyone who has been affected by a suicide. This includes dealing with police and coroners; helping with media enquiries; preparing for and attending an inquest and helping to access other, appropriate, local support services. Call 0330 088 9255 or visit www.amparo.org.uk for more details.
- Hub of Hope is the UK’s most comprehensive national mental health support database. Download the free app, visit hubofhope.co.uk or text SHOUT to 85258 to find relevant services near you.
- Young Persons Advisory Service – Providing mental health and emotional wellbeing services for Liverpool’s children, young people and families. tel: 0151 707 1025 email: support@ypas.org.uk
- Paul’s Place – providing free counselling and group sessions to anyone living in Merseyside who has lost a family member or friend to suicide. Tel: 0151 226 0696 or email: paulsplace@beaconcounsellingtrust.co.uk
- The Martin Gallier Project – offering face to face support for individuals considering suicide and their families. Opening hours 9.30-16.30, 7 days a week. Tel: 0151 644 0294 email: triage@gallierhouse.co.uk
- James’ Place – supports men over 18 who are experiencing a suicidal crisis by providing quick access to therapy and support. Call 0151 303 5757 from Monday to Friday between 9.30am and 5.30pm or visit https://www.jamesplace.org.uk/
Ms Halliwell said it arose that a naked photograph of Semina had been shared among pupils at Stanley High School, and she called the school to express her concern. She said she did not specifically ask the school to address the issue at the time.
In March 2021, Semina told her mum she had previously taken four prescription tablets, leading to Ms Halliwell emailing the school saying her daughter “had attempted to kill herself by taking an overdose”. That same month, the 12-year-old told her mum about the alleged rape, which had occurred two months earlier.
She also showed her mum a video of her being attacked by a group of other children, who were not Stanley High School pupils. She said: “She didn’t tell me at first but she had bruises on her neck and I asked her and she just showed me a video that was online, and it was her being beaten up. I asked who is it in the video, who are these people, and she then told me who these people were and why they were doing it.”
Semina’s mum Rachel Halliwell(Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)
Ms Halliwell reported the alleged rape and assaults to the police. However, Semina “initially didn’t want to talk about what happened. Ms Halliwell said: “Semina wanted to do an ABE (achieving best evidence interview) but she was so very frightened at the time so there was a lot going on. And it was only Semina and myself. There was no support, no advice for me, no advice for Semina. We were just left in the situation.
“Then the PC called on a Sunday and asked if she could do an ABE at 11am that day, and there was just no way I could have said to Semina ‘we’re going to do an ABE today’ because she just couldn’t do that. Firstly she liked her routine.
“Secondly you just can’t spring something on Semina like that. Thirdly she was worried about all of this. She was scared what was going to happen when it all came out. I just think if there had been a lot more support at the time it could have been very different.
“But at the time, you go into that situation you don’t know what to expect and don’t know what’s there for help and support. So when she spoke to the officers, the officers said to her that it was her word against his.”
She said this was why her daughter withdrew her complaint, adding: “Because she felt like she wasn’t believed and it’s not going to go anywhere. To say to a 12-year-old child ‘it’s going to take 18 months to two years to go to court, and do you really want it hanging over your head?’ and ‘it’s your word against his’ is not what any woman or child who has been through a sexual assault or rape needs to hear.”
She said her daughter continued to be harassed by other children until her overdose on June 9 2021. That night, police officers attended the family’s house following another report of harassment, and were combing through CCTV.
Ms Halliwell said Semina was “determined” to go through with an ABE interview after learning of a previous allegation of sexual assault against the same boy who had targeted her. Ms Halliwell said: “She told me that what had happened to her (and) the other person, she wanted to stop him doing it to anybody else again.”
At around midnight, Semina said she had “had enough” and went upstairs. Her mum said: “I took it that she had enough of police being in the house, and also had enough of everything. There was so much that had happened at home and at school.
“While talking to the police about how we got to this place and what had started from the beginning, I just assumed she had had enough of talking about it.”
Police left the house at around 12.30am. A short time later Ms Halliwell found empty packets of prescription tablets on the floor, and Semina told her she had taken them. She was taken to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, where her condition deteriorated and she died on June 12.
Ms Halliwell went on to say Semina had been offered “no help, no support, nothing” after reporting what had happened to her. She said: “The officers, the way they spoke to her and the way they presented themselves to her, in my view, was unprofessional.
“Not how you should speak to a 12-year-old child who has gone through a sexual experience of rape like she had done. The fact that they didn’t care. I felt like it was an inconvenience to them. It was almost like they couldn’t be bothered.” The inquest continues.