Noah Woods had left the playground through a ‘gap in the fence’ before his death aged three.
The toddler was found dead in a lake by divers following a huge search with over 1,300 people involved in Brantham, Suffolk.
Noah, who was mildly autistic and partially deaf, had left a play area ‘through a gap in the fence’, an inquest in Ipswich heard.
He was last seen playing near a blue roundabout in the village at around 3pm on Tuesday, September 15.
It’s thought he became separated from his grandfather and had run off towards a new-build housing estate and fishing lake known as ‘Decoy Pond’.
Sign up for all of the latest stories
Start your day informed with Metro's newsletter or get alerts the moment it happens.
After his body was found, his dad Rhys Woods said on social media that the family were ‘just hoping that he would be hiding somewhere obvious where someone could find him’.
A charity supporting dads and their mental health quickly set up a fundraiser to help Noah’s family.
Good Dads Club launched the page on JustGiving, and within days, it had exceeded £80,000 as 5,069 people had donated.
After a 24-hour search, the child’s body was discovered in the Brantham pond around 300m from where he is said to have broken free and run down an alleyway.
Helicopters, volunteers, the police and Coastguard searched the area, while residents were urged to check doorbell footage, gardens, sheds and any spaces where a small child might go.
Superintendent Pearse, whose voice cracked with emotion as he spoke to the volunteers, paid tribute to Noah’s family and ‘all those who knew him.’
He said Noah’s family and multiple agencies searching the area were ‘overwhelmed by the outpouring of public support, people putting on their boots and helping us with the search and that, ladies and gentlemen, is yourselves.’
Got a story? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. Or you can submit your videos and pictures here.
For more stories like this, check our.
Follow Metro.co.uk on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news updates. You can now also get Metro.co.uk articles sent straight to your device. Sign up for our daily push alerts here.
MORE: Police disguised as a delivery rider takes down knife suspect
MORE: Inside Brian Laundrie’s parents’ lives as ‘pariahs’ — five years after Gabby Petito’s murder
MORE: Man’s last words in desperate 911 call after son ‘stabbed him 40 times’