Tragedy may take on many different forms but when it involves a young child, it always seems to be heartbreaking. Unfortunately, that is the news out of Lincolnshire, after a young boy passed away.

Bronson Battersby, a 2-year-old boy, was found dead next to his father, who had also died. They were found on January 9, and a ‘rapid review’ has been launched by authorities in the area.

Bronson’s 60-year-old father, Kenneth, had apparently died of a heart attack. Unfortunately, the young boy died after suffering from dehydration and starvation. There is no thought that there were suspicious activities associated with this tragedy.

Even though they don’t suspect that there is any foul play, they have launched a review. Bronson’s mother said that the police in the area as well as children’s services had missed a number of chances to save his life.

The bodies were found on January 9, but on January 2, a social worker visited the rental home. This was something that happened on a regular basis because they were considered to be vulnerable.

When Kenneth didn’t answer the door, the social worker got concerned and contacted the police. Two days later, the social worker came again, but no one answered and she called the police again.

It took five days for the woman to get a key from the landlord and to check on the father and son directly. That is when she found both bodies, that were visibly dead. The family pet was also found, very weak and thin but still alive.

According to reports, Kenneth had died from a heart attack no earlier than December 29. He already had a known heart condition which led to jaundice.

According to the postmortem, Bronson died of dehydration and starvation. They said that he was found ‘curled up’ at his father’s legs.

According to his mother, 43-year-old Sarah Piesse, if social services had done their job, Bronson would still be alive.

She went on to say: “But they didn’t do anything. They can’t let them get away with this. We have to be able to rely on social workers to keep our children safe.

“They think Kenneth died no earlier than December 29. It means if the social worker had pushed to get in when she got no reply on January 2 then Bronson would still have been alive.”

According to the executive director of children’s services, Heather Sandy, the event was devastating. She said: “Kenneth has passed away at his home.

“He was at home on his own with Bronson and that meant that there was nobody left to give Bronson care, and sadly as a result of that, Bronson has also passed away.

“What’s really important is that we understand fully what has happened, so the rapid review will allow all of those agencies to come together and to look at what has happened.

“This is absolutely devastating for us and very much more devastating for the family. And our thoughts are with them.”