The Treasury 'materially contributed' to the death of an 'exemplary' personal assistant who killed herself after being subjected to disciplinary proceedings sparked by an anonymous complaint, a coroner ruled today.
The Government department failed to follow its own procedures before Chloe Moffat, 26, was found dead at her parents' home in May last year, Surrey Coroners' Court heard.
Ms Moffat had been summoned to a meeting with senior Treasury staff and left fearing for her job despite it being unlikely she would be dismissed.
The inquest heard her managers should have reassured her of this.
The PA, who had worked at the department for three years and was on course for a promotion after receiving a bonus for good work, left the meeting 'devastated' and convinced she had been sacked.
She took her own life the following day.
Coroner Anna Crawford concluded that the Treasury 'contributed' to Ms Moffat's death through its handling of the case.
She ruled Ms Moffat should have been told that, even if the allegations against her were proven, the likely sanction would have been a written warning rather than dismissal.
Ms Crawford said: 'HM Treasury materially contributed to Ms Moffat's death by not applying their written Discipline Policy and Procedure in that they did not inform her that the likely penalty if the allegations were proven was a written warning and not dismissal.'
Chloe Moffat, 26, was on course for a promotion after being awarded a bonus for good work - but took her own life after an anonymous complaint and she feared being sacked
She said instead of calling Ms Moffat into the meeting – which was attended by her line manager Kim Aldrich and the head of global issues Liz Farmer – she should have been given details of the allegations in a letter.
The hearing was told that Ms Moffat was visibly distressed during the meeting and that she was 'shocked' and 'crying at points'.
Her line manager said she had asked for her best friend in the office to attend the proceedings with her but was told that this would be 'inappropriate'.
And when Ms Moffat asked if she would lose her job, the senior manager told the court she had said 'she couldn't predict any outcome of any potential investigation'.
After the meeting, Ms Moffat temporarily lost access to her director's email inbox and diary.
She was also advised not to speak to colleagues about the allegations and potential investigation.
The coroner said Ms Moffat's state of mind with regard to her being afraid she that would be sacked likely contributed to her decision to kill herself.
The inquest heard after the meeting on May 19 last year, Ms Moffat sent a text message to a friend that read: 'I am going to be fired.'
The pair met up in central London where Ms Moffat 'broke down crying' and was 'incredibly concerned about the reputational impact' of the allegations.
The friend said she tried to reassure Ms Moffat but that she remained 'distressed'.
Ms Moffat left the meeting in May last year 'devastated' and convinced she had lost her job. She killed herself the following day
Ms Moffat, who lived in London, then returned to Godalming in Surrey to spend time with her parents.
She was found dead by her father on the morning of May 20, with her medical cause of death being given as hanging.
The inquest heard she had no mental health concerns prior to her death and that the previous day she had gone to work and had 'interactions with friends and colleagues'.
Ms Moffat was then taken in for a chat, which she believed was a routine meeting with her line manager but it was also attended by Ms Farmer.
She was told a number of anonymous complaints had been made against her, stating that she had shared confidential information about colleagues which she had access to through her line manager's email inbox.
The inquest heard the managers had followed the advice given to them by the HR department but the way the complaint was handled was not in accordance with company policy.
The hearing was told Treasury staff described the purpose of the meeting as an informal 'fact-finding' meeting – but instead internal emails showed that they had already deemed the level of misconduct to be 'serious'.
A coroner ruled that the Treasury 'materially contributed' to the death of Ms Moffat after bosses failed to tell her she wouldn't lose her job
Ms Crawford instead told the court that she believes the real reason behind the meeting was to see if Ms Moffat would admit to the allegations so they could move forward with a formal disciplinary process.
The coroner said that before the meeting on May 19 'there was already sufficient information available' to determine the level of potential misconduct.
She said the meeting with Ms Moffat was therefore 'not in accordance with HR policy'.
The court also heard that where there are allegations of serious misconduct, it is necessary to 'put necessary safeguarding measures in place'.
The coroner added that these 'should have been in place for Chloe'.
Ms Crawford concluded that Ms Moffat's death was a suicide and that she was 'satisfied' that she had intended to take her own life.
She said she would send a prevention of future deaths report to the Treasury and to the head of the civil service because there may be a 'wider issue' within Government.
Paying tribute to their daughter, Ms Moffat's parents said in a statement: 'Chloe was a bright, caring and talented young woman who loved her family, her friends and her work.
'She had an exemplary employment record, was highly regarded by those who worked with her, and had a promising future ahead of her.
'As her family, we remain immensely proud of everything she achieved in her short life.'
A Treasury spokesman said: 'We continue to mourn Chloe's passing as a colleague and friend. Our thoughts remain with her family and friends.
'We take the Coroner's concerns extremely seriously and recognise it is important to act quickly. We are now considering the findings carefully.
'We have introduced improvements to guidance, support and wellbeing arrangements but recognise we must continue to take action to prevent this happening again.'