A sergeant major found asphyxiated at his barracks may not have died if his army bosses had taken more notice of his previous suicide attempts, his ex-wife believes.

The inquest into the death of William (Bill) Bielby, 35, was due to have been held earlier this week at Gloucester Coroner's Court.

But after hearing of family concerns about events leading up to his death at Beachley Barracks, near Chepstow, the coroner, Katy Skerrett, decided to adjourn to a later date so that evidence can be called.

She said she was not prepared to go ahead with the inquest as planned because she had cause for concern about the submissions made by Sgt Major Bielby's family.

The sergeant major, known as Bill, served in the 1st Btn the Rifles. He was found dead by his partner, Fiona Stewart, in his accommodation at Beachley Barracks on 31st October last year.

The coroner was told he had been receiving treatment for PTSD since March 2015 but had been discharged from that in August 2017.

His ex-wife, Carla Ford, had raised concerns over his care in March but in a late submission the day before Tuesday's scheduled inquest she stated that she felt there were issues around an assessment undertaken prior to his death. She believed there was a failure to share information about his level of risk of suicide.

Ms Ford, who was legally represented, said she felt Bill would still be alive if circumstances had been different.

In the light of her comments, the coroner said she needed to consider whether it was a case where a 'Report to Prevent Future Deaths' was necessary. She could not do that without further evidence and submissions, she said, so had to 'regretfully' adjourn the inquest.

Ms Ford claimed that an army welfare officer was informed of her husband's suicide attempt in 2015 and his further attempt in 2016. She questioned whether this was recorded and shared with all relevant army personnel.

She believed if this had been recorded and/or shared properly it may have affected the outcome of his assessment on 19th October, just 12 days before his death, she said.

There was no doctor present at the assessment - a breach of army policy, she maintained.

And she said she believes he should have been placed under supervision, which may have prevented him ending his life.

It was also heard in court that a nurse had confirmed that a protective factor in Bill's life was his children. However, the children had been removed from him due to a serious allegation at that time and this could have also put him at higher risk of suicide.

The coroner said there are "potentially matters I have to address under my PFD (Preventing Future Deaths) duty that may have been causal to Bill's death.

"These are the recording of previous suicide attempts, sharing of information and the assessment on the 19th October. There are no witnesses here to clarify those points so regretfully I need to adjourn this inquest.

"I will say this could have been dealt with if I had received the submissions earlier."

The inquest was adjourned until the next available date.

Ms Skerrett said they are looking at March/April next year but she is keen to bring the family closure earlier than that if possible.