Five day inquest into death of British national Grace Moulding concludes in Alice Springs
A young British woman should ‘never’ have driven on a remote NT highway, an inquest into her death as heard. Read the latest from court.
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Thursday, June 5: A remote NT community has established a garden to remember a young UK woman who died in a crash, with an inquest into her death hearing she should have “never” gotten behind the wheel.
The coronial inquest into Grace Moulding, 27, concluded in the Alice Springs Local Court on Thursday.
In an emotional moment, Ampilatwatja resident Wilma Ross told the inquest the community is remembering the young woman, who was the community’s arts centre manager for five months before her death in a car crash.
She said the arts centre had established a garden of remembrance for Grace, called “the garden of Grace”.
Listening to the inquest from the UK, Ms Moulding’s mother told the court “that’s truly beautiful and that means so much to us, and our daughter’s memory”.
Ms Moulding, originally from Leicester, died on June 17, 2023, when the Toyota Troop Carrier she was driving rolled over on the Sandover Hwy.
She was 27-years-old at the time, with the court previously hearing she was travelling 117km/h on the highway.
In her closing statement, counsel-assisting Helena Blundell said Ms Moulding should have “never” driven the Toyota.
“I submit your honour that you will find that Grace did not have the (driving) experience, the (driving) skills, the (driving) training or the requisite licence and should never have any position of driving the arts centre vehicle on a remote unsealed road,” she said.
At the time of the crash, Ms Moulding only held a NT learners permit, but the inquest previously heard she held an Australian C-class license while in WA before she returned to the UK.
Ms Moulding was travelling back to Ampilatwatja from Alice Springs, where she was the manager of the arts centre in the community.
In the car with her was Harriet Brown, who survived the crash, and was present again in court on Thursday.
The inquest is examining if the speed limit on the unsealed Sandover Hwy needs to change.
Currently, the default speed limit is 110km/h.
The inquest previously heard the highway had no posted speed limits.
Ms Moulding was in four-wheel-drive mode when she was driving, and police said the car was roadworthy at the time of the time of the crash.
However, the court previously heard the Toyota – a work car – was unregistered, with the inquest also examining what policies the Arts Centre had in place to ensure vehicles were registered.
Representing the arts centre, in her closing statement lawyer Sandra Wendlandt said the vehicle “was well serviced and was insured” and submitted Coroner Elisabeth Armitage finds it was “an oversight” the car was unregistered.
Other areas of examination were what the arts centre policies were for driving off road, and what the maintenance schedule was for the Sandover Hwy.
In her closing statement, Ms Blundell said the arts centre had implemented work, health, and safety policies in the wake of Ms Moulding’s death.
She provided recommendations to the Coroner that the arts centre adopt new technology for their work vehicles, alongside new policies for driving on unsealed roads and creating a register which shows the registration status of work vehicles.
She also recommended a “priority review” be undertaken on the Sandover Hwy speed limit, which should be completed within 12 months.
Lawyer James Stuchbery, representing the Department of Logistics and Infrastructure, said his client had no objection to a review of the Sandover Hwy speed limit.
Ms Armitage will hand down her findings at a later date.
UK woman ‘right fit’ for art centre gig despite no driver’s licence: Court
Wednesday, June 4: A former arts centre manager says a British national she hired five months before her death was the “right fit” for the job – despite her only holding her learners permit.
Grace Moulding, from Leicester, UK came to the NT in February 2023 to become the new manager of the Ampilatwatja Arts Centre, located within the community 322km northwest of Alice Springs.
Five months later, on June 17, she would die in a car crash on the Sandover Hwy returning to Ampilatwatja from Alice Springs.
An inquest into her death in Alice Springs entered its third day on Wednesday, with former arts centre manager Caroline Hunter resuming giving evidence.
She faced questions from lawyer Sandra Wendlandt, representing the corporation which oversees the arts centre.
Ms Wendlandt questioned Ms Hunter why Ms Moulding was hired, given she only held a learners drivers license.
“Because she wanted the job and she was qualified for the job and it wasn’t a concern that she was only on her L’s,” Ms Hunter replied.
“She was the most qualified. She’d had extensive experience two times coming out to the community for a couple of months at a time. She knew the community, she had a masters degree, she was enthusiastic for the job.
“She was the right fit”.
When Ms Hunter began her evidence, she took a section 38 certificate from Coroner Elisabeth Armitage, due to an ongoing WorkSafe investigation into the crash.
Ms Moulding was 27-years-old when she died.
The court heard she previously held an Australian C-Class drivers license, but upon her return to Australia, she had to reapply for her license, and was issued a learners permit.
She was driving a Toyota Troop Carrier on the Sandover Hwy when she hit a rut, causing the car to roll after an “overcorrection” she performed caused the car to flip.
She was in four-wheel-drive mode at the time of the accident, the court heard on the first day.
In the car with Ms Moulding was Harriet Brown, who again appeared in court in the inquest.
The Sandover hwy has a default speed limit of 110km/h, but “speed calculations” performed by police determined she was travelling at 117km/h when she crashed, the court heard on the first day.
The inquest is examining whether the speed limit needs to be changed on the highway, alongside the maintenance schedule for it.
Other areas of examination include the corporation’s policies and procedures in place at the time to safely travel on unsealed roads, and what policies the corporation has in place to ensure vehicles are registered.
On the first day, the inquest heard the Toyota Ms Moulding was driving was unregistered, but police determined the vehicle was roadworthy due to a recent service completed prior to the accident.
The court also heard there have been three other accidents involving arts centre vehicles, the first in 2010 and involving Ms Hunter, the court heard on the second day.
Prior to coming to Australia, Ms Moulding graduated from the University of Brighton with an honours degree in Globalisation, History and Politics.
On her first trip to Australia, she worked at Yuendumu before returning to the UK.
She began a Masters Degree in curation at Brighton, and returned to the NT just before covid hit.
Her dissertation “Indigenous Curatorial Methodologies: Songlines: Tracking the Seven Sisters” was published posthumously in the journal in the Journal of Museum Ethnography.
The inquest continues.
No posted speed limit on NT hwy which claimed British woman’s life: Court
Tuesday, June 3: A road with a history of accidents – which claimed the life of a young British national who “drove with caution” – had no posted speed limit, day two of an inquest into the woman’s death has heard.
Resuming in the Alice Springs Local Court on Tuesday, the inquest into the death of British national Grace Moulding began with former first responder and four-wheel-drive driving instructor Craig Pankhurst giving evidence.
Mr Pankhurst told the court he’d never seen a posted speed limit sign on the Sandover Hwy, a 517km long highway which stretches from the Stuart Hwy in the NT into Queensland.
Under questioning from James Stuchbery, who is representing the Department of Logistics and Infrastructure, Mr Pankhurst agreed he’d only seen warning signs on the highway when he’d driven down it.
In 2023, Grace Moulding, from Leicester, UK, was killed in a crash on the highway.
On the first day, the court heard she was travelling at 117km/h in an unregistered car when she hit a rut.
Currently, 110km/h is the default Sandover Hwy speed limit.
On Tuesday, Mr Pankhurst said he believed “we get a better quality of driver” when people drive 80km/h on unsealed roads in the Territory, as “you’ve got more time to be more of a defensive driver”.
Mr Pankhurst told the court he had 21 years experience as a fireman in South Australia before he bought a driving school in Alice Springs 20 years ago.
Two of the four pillars of inquiry for the inquest are focused on the highway, with coroner Elisabeth Armitage examining if the speed limit needs to be changed, and what the maintenance schedule is for the unsealed highway.
Upon hitting the rut, Ms Moulding performed a series of “overcorrections”, which resulted in the Toyota Troop Carrier she was driving flipping and rolling over, the inquest heard on the first day.
The car was in four-wheel-drive mode at the time of the crash, and police ruled out “the unroadworthy aspect” of the car due to a recent service, the court previously heard.
Ms Moulding was 27-years-old when she was killed in the crash on June 17, 2023, while her passenger, Harriet Brown, survived.
Ms Brown was back in court on Tuesday, and was observed listening intently, while Ms Moulding’s parents were again listening via videolink from the UK.
Both Ms Brown and Ms Moulding were working for the Ampilatwatja Arts Corporation and were travelling back to the community from Alice Springs.
In the last 15 years, there have been three accidents involving vehicles from the Ampilatwatja Arts Corporation on the Sandover Hwy prior to Ms Moulding’s fatal crash, the court heard on the first day.
On the first day, NT Police also tendered a document which said there had been 40 crashes on the highway in a 10 year “snapshot”.
In the wake of the fatal crash which killed Ms Moulding, a WorkSafe investigation was launched.
Former Ampilatwatja Arts Centre manager Caroline Hunter gave evidence via videolink on Tuesday.
She took a section 38 certificate from Coroner Elisabeth Armitage so her evidence could not be used in other legal proceedings.
course.
In 2010, Ms Hunter was involved in a rollover in an Ampilatwatja Arts Toyota Troop Carrier after she got “stuck in a truck’s wheel rut”.
She said there were no injuries as “everyone was in seatbelts”, and she was travelling about 35km/h.
She had not completed a four-wheel-drive course before or after the accident, she said, but told the court she had experience driving four-wheel-drives.
Ms Hunter said she told Ms Moulding multiple times to book herself into a four-wheel-driving course.
She said it was “on me” to ensure the vehicle Ms Moulding was driving was registered, and believed the car had 12 months registration.
The court had previously heard the ownership of the vehicle was not transferred to the arts centre, with notifications of registration renewal unlikely to come to the arts centre, Ms Armitage said on Tuesday.
The court heard the manager of the arts centre, who took over after Ms Moulding, was unable to find any policies and procedures for the centre.
After the lunchbreak, Ms Hunter tendered a procedure manual for the arts centre which she’d found on an old hard drive.
The other two pillars the inquest is examining are the policies and procedures the arts centre had in place around travelling on unsealed roads, and what policies the company had to ensure vehicles were registered.
Also giving evidence on Tuesday via videolink was Joe Sykes, who offered his condolences to the family.
Mr Sykes was working as a handyman within the community at the time of the crash.
He gave evidence of driving “around 200km” with Ms Moulding on the Sandover hwy.
“We wouldn’t’ve got into top gear, I don’t think,” he said.
He said he instructed her to drive safely, using it as an opportunity to see how her driving was on an unsealed road.
“She drove with caution, I believe.”
He made sure she could change a tyre if she got a puncture, and explained to her what was required for long distance driving on unsealed roads in the Territory, the court heard.
He said he believed Ms Moulding held a C-class license in Australia.
On the first day, the court heard Ms Moulding held a NT learners license when she crashed.
Ms Brown held an unrestricted UK drivers license at the time of the accident.
The inquest continues on Wednesday.
‘Overcorrection’ causes British woman’s car to flip in road tragedy, inquest hears
Monday, June 2: A young British national’s final “overcorrection” on a remote Territory road was the catalyst to her car rolling over, the first day of an inquest into her death has heard.
The five day inquest into the death of Grace Moulding began in the Alice Springs Local Court on Monday, a little under two years after her loss in 2023.
Ms Moulding died in a crash on Sandover Hwy, 112km south of Arlparra, on June 17 when she was returning to Ampilatwatja from Alice Springs.
She was the Ampilatwatja Arts Centre manager, and was returning to the community with arts centre studio co-ordinator Harriet Brown.
Ms Brown appeared in court on Monday, and sat in the back row, occasionally wiping her eyes.
Ms Moulding, who held an NT learners licence, was behind the wheel of a Toyota Troop Carrier – which the court heard was unregistered.
Giving evidence first in the inquest was Major Crash Unit detective sergeant Sean Aila, who told the court he believed Ms Moulding swerved four times before crashing.
“It appears that her left hand passenger side tyres have got into some loose dirt and she’s overcorrected,” he said.
“From the marks there, we can see that she’s pulled it nearly across to the other side of the road.
“A common reaction is to bring it back to the side that you were on, an overcorrection, a steering input to the left and it’s brought her back across to the other side of the road.
“And again (she made) another steering input to again correct herself from driving off the road, and she’s turned the wheel too hard and the vehicle’s gone into a hard yaw and tripped and rolled to the resting place.”
In investigating the crash, Mr Aila said “speed calculations” determined Ms Moulding was travelling at 117km/h on the road.
Currently, the default speed limit on the unsealed Sandover Hwy is 110km/h.
A recent service meant inspectors “could rule out the unroadworthy aspect” of the vehicle in the crash, Mr Aila said.
But investigations also uncovered the vehicle was unregistered, the court heard, due to both the seller and the buyer not submitting the necessary forms upon the completion of the sale.
The court heard the vehicle belonged to the arts corporation.
Representing the corporation is Sandra Wendlandt, who asked if Mr Aila found the corporation’s driving policies during the course of his investigation, which Mr Aila confirmed he did.
He also said the car did not have learner plates attached, nor did he uncover a learner logbook when he searched the car.
The court heard Ms Moulding held an unrestricted UK driver’s license at the time of the accident.
Ms Moulding’s parents, Rod Moulding and Janet Lam, listened in to the inquest via videolink from Great Britain.
Counsel-assisting the Coroner Helena Blundell read out a statement on behalf of the family, who said “the grief we feel is insurmountable” as they try to continue on with their lives.
“We find ourselves struggling through day-to-day life, unable to work or function on some days. But we try our hardest to be brave,” Ms Blundell said on the family’s behalf.
“Although we will mourn you forever, we take comfort in our glorious memories of times shared.”
The court heard Ms Moulding was born in Leicester and the inquest began a month after she would have turned 29.
At the time of her death, she was aged 27.
She had graduated university, and previously worked at an arts centre in Yuendumu before returning to the UK.
She was back in Australia just before Covid hit. Upon her return, she got the job with Ampilatwatja Arts Centre.
During her opening statement, Ms Blundell outlined four issues Coroner Elisabeth Armitage would examine throughout the inquest.
The issues were investigating if the current Sandover Hwy speed limit was appropriate; what the maintenance schedule was for the highway; the corporation’s policies around driving on unsealed roads; and what systems it had in place to ensure vehicles were registered and ownership details were current.
There had been three other crashes on the Sandover Hwy involving cars belonging to Ampilatwatja Arts, the first of which occurred in 2010.
There “were no serious injuries” in the first, Ms Blundell said, while in the second in 2013 a Belgian national also rolled a Troop Carrier.
The third, in 2021, also involved a Troop Carrier rolling, with the passenger and driver suffering “significant injuries”, Ms Blundell said.
The inquest continues.
Originally published as Five day inquest into death of British national Grace Moulding concludes in Alice Springs
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