Andy Smith, President of the Association of Directors of Children’s Services, said:

“Sara’s death is a tragedy, and it would not be right to comment on the detail ahead of sentencing and publication of a local learning review.  However, the recent media reporting of the physical, mental, and emotional abuse she endured in her short life has been utterly heart-breaking. 

“For our part, as the leaders of local services that protect children and young people on a daily basis, we know just how complicated the work of identifying, disrupting and responding to child abuse is. Each day, our teams work with lots of children and families across the country but sadly, despite our best efforts to manage and mitigate risk, it can never be totally eliminated; no one knew the extent of the abuse Sara suffered at the hands of the people who should have loved and cared for her the most until after her death.

“Child protection work is complex because families are complex. Social workers, police officers, GPs, teachers, and others work together to identify children at risk of harm and to build a picture of their life. Our responses to the multi-agency analysis of the information available at a point in time must be proportionate and take into account children’s wishes.  This is not straightforward, particularly when unscrupulous adults seek to deceive the professionals tasked with making difficult, often life changing, decisions on a daily basis with the best interests of children in mind.   

“Over 150,000 children were home educated at any point in the last academic year.  This case, while rare, demonstrates why the Association has raised concerns over a number of years about the use of elective home education to avoid scrutiny where safeguarding questions arise.  A national register has been discussed for a long time and the new government has confirmed plans to establish one, along with stricter safeguards where the child is the subject of a child protection plan, which is helpful.”

ENDS