Tribute to beloved dad and 'life and soul of party' after tragic suicide when his baby was just six weeks old

Dad-of-three Thomas McDougall (Tom), from Arbourthorne, died at 31 when his newborn daughter was just six weeks old.

Tom’s heartbroken widow, Stacey McDougall, said: “He will never be able to walk his daughters down the aisle or kick a ball with his son. We won’t grow old together.”

On August 12, 2023, Tom’s body was tragically was found by a member of the public.

Tom had struggled with his mental health since he was 18, which worsened after he witnessed an accident at work.

He had previously been under the care of IAPT (now Sheffield Talking Therapies).

Tom and Stacey met in Gran Canaria in 2009 and married in September 2016. Tom was originally from Glasgow and was known as “Scottish Tom”.

He worked as a bin loader for four years but his mental health began to decline after he witnessed a colleague have an accident at work.

Stacey said: “He shut himself away and lost his passion. He was a massive Rangers fan but stopped watching football in stadiums because he couldn’t deal with the loud noise.”

On June 18, Tom was taken to a crisis house and was discharged after five nights.

Katie Hughes, a mental health nurse and senior practitioner with the home treatment team, said Tom was making positive plans for the future and his wife and children were a driving force to get better.

He was discharged with a safety plan and had helplines to contact if he was in crisis.

Tom went missing on August 6 and did not attend an appointment which was scheduled for August 8.

Stacey said: “I was in the garden with family when she saw the police approach. I immediately knew it was about Tom. I will never forget that day...nothing had prepared me for that moment.

“Tom was my world. Since he died I have not been able to go back to the flat where we lived together because there are too many memories.”

Coroner Hannah Berry concluded Tom died by hanging contributed to by cocaine and alcohol consumption.

She said: “I have never seen so many family members in the public gallery. It is clear he was very well loved.

“The support and guidance offered was appropriate to national procedures and I am not of the view there were any systematic failures.”

A family pen-portrait of Tom read: “Tom was the life and soul of the party and had the ability to connect with anyone through his warm heart. He wanted nothing more than his family to be happy and wanted to be the best version of himself.

“Tom was our hero and nothing will fill the hole in our hearts. Not a second goes by that we are not thinking about him.”

When life is difficult, Samaritans are here – day or night, 365 days a year. You can call them for free on 116 123, email them at [email protected], or visit www.samaritans.org to find your nearest branch.