An elderly couple from Sheffield jumped to their deaths from a cliff in Whitby due to one of them suffering with a deteriorating health condition, an inquest has heard. 

David and Susan Jeffcock were found on the rocks at the base of East Cliff on 30 July. 

The inquest heard that the couple had sent a letter to their solicitor confirming that they intended to end their lives. 

Mr Jeffcock’s nephew, Kevin Shepherd, said his uncle had bone cancer and it is believed he decided to take his life because he was in pain from the condition, with Susan jumping with him.

Mr Jeffcock, 80, and Mrs Jeffcock, 74, spent much of their life together in Sheffield and retired to the coastal town of Whitby, one of their favourite spots, in a flat above the harbour. 

He was a taxi driver for several years, while she was a secretary at Stanley Tools. 

The couple did not have children and “lived well together”, travelling around the world on their holidays.

A statement from PC James Turner said that on 30 July a member of the public found a mobile phone and jacket at the top of a cliff, and looked over the edge to see two bodies on the rocks below.

Both were pronounced dead at the scene and their bodies were airlifted by the Coastguard helicopter.