Amber Peat’s mum ‘showed no emotion’ when she reported girl, 13, missing

AMBER Peat's mum "showed no emotion" when she reported her 13-year-old daughter missing and thought she was "attention-seeking" before she was found hanged, an inquest heard.

The cop who spoke to Kelly Peat hours after the teen's disappearance was struck by her cool, "matter of fact" manner.

PC Nicola Roe was told Amber had been asked to empty a cool box, "was not happy" about it and left.

"She seemed not particularly emotional or upset, maybe frustrated," she told the Nottingham inquest.

'ATTENTION SEEKING'
"She described her background, referred to Amber throwing temper tantrums, what she called attention seeking," she continued.

Mrs Peat said Amber had gone missing before and returned home safely. The mother seemed "well rehearsed in giving information", the officer said.

"They expected her back the next morning," she added.

Amber's body was found in a hedgerow on June 2, 2015, three days after she walked out of the home she shared with her mum Kelly, stepdad Daniel and two younger siblings.

The last sighting of her alive was by local Adam Lamb, who was cleaning his car on a Mansfield street when a girl walked past.

He closed a car door to make it easier for her to pass, Nottinghamshire Live reported.

"She smiled as if to say thanks," he said. "She was chewing her sleeve and walked along Westfield Lane.

"She was looking into the bushes as if she was going inside them and then she was gone."

The Nottingham inquest earlier heard how "alarm bells" were ringing after the teenager confided in the school over her alleged hellish home life.

One of her teachers added that Amber had mentioned a "big secret" that she wasn't allowed to talk about - which turned out to be her stepdad had been jailed for 16 months over £120,000 tax fraud.

'EMOTIONALLY ABUSED'
Amber's former vice principal referred her to the council's safeguarding unit, saying: "This one is ringing alarm bells. It just does not feel right. My gut instinct is there is something not right here and I can't put my finger on it."

On one occasion she told teachers that she was woken up by her stepdad at 11.30pm and was ordered to mop their floor until the early hours.

Her form tutor also said she became concerned for Amber's welfare after she came in "devastated" while wearing ill-fitting grey jogging bottoms one day in March 2015.

Ms Beard told the court: "The other children in the classroom thought that she had actually wet herself, because it was so unusual that someone would be wearing something like that."

This one is ringing alarm bells. It just does not feel right

Amber allegedly told Ms Beard that she had been forced to wear them by Mr Peat because of her bad behaviour over the weekend.

Sharon Clay, a school key worker, reported a number of incidents to MASH and said she thought Amber was being "emotionally abused" by her stepdad.

Ms Clay added that Amber was "always hungry" and losing weight.

Previously a social worker said there was "no immediate risk" to Amber despite her repeatedly running away from home.

The hearing was told that since Amber's death procedures had been put in place, including better recording systems, that aimed to gather and collate information better.

The inquest continues.