A coroner has ruled that an Oldham mother died due to combined drug and alcohol toxicity.

Donna Henshaw, who was 38 at the time of her death, combined alcohol, cocaine and methadone on May 13, 2020 and was found dead in her flat by her partner Mark Brady.

Ms Henshaw was understood to have had a long-standing dependency on alcohol and according to a pathologist, had fatty liver disease at the time of her death.

Emil Salmo, pathologist at Royal Oldham Hospital said during the inquest: "Putting everything together, combined drug and alcohol toxicity was the main cause of death."

It is not known if Ms Henshaw's actions were intentional, with the Record of Inquest stating: "The evidence does not show to the required standard whether she intended the consequences of her actions."

Mr Brady explained how on the day of Ms Henshaw's death, the two had gone into Oldham town centre that day and spent some time drinking lager.

He said she left to go home at around 2pm and he returned at 4pm to see what he presumed was her asleep in the living room.

He went to sleep in the bedroom himself and when he awoke, noticed she was in the same position and was not responding to his attempts to wake her up.

He then called 999 and was told to administer CPR, however the attempts were unsuccessful.

It is believed that Ms Henshaw had managed to obtain a bottle of methadone belonging to Mr Brady at the time, which he had hidden in the extractor fan of the oven.

He also confirmed he was aware of her taking cocaine within 48 hours of her death.

Toxicologist Julie Evans explained that the combination of methadone and alcohol, two substances that slow down one’s breathing and heart rate, was very dangerous.

Ms Evans said the levels of cocaine in Ms Henshaw's system when she died were not "excessive", saying they were the "sort of levels you would see in recreational use".

However, she pointed out that cocaine can cause adverse effects.

Speaking at the inquest, Ms Henshaw's sister, Charlotte, said she believed her sister had been in an "unhealthy relationship" in the years building up to her death.

Coroner Catherine McKenna concluded the cause of death was "alcohol and drug related".