Children's services 'ignored warnings' before Sara Sharif's death as PM says questions must be answered
by Emma Soteriou · LBCBy Emma Soteriou
Children's services 'ignored warnings' before Sara Sharif's death, with the PM saying questions must now be answered.
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Sara Sharif's broken and battered body was found in her family home on August 10 last year.
She suffered 96 injuries, including fractures, burns and bite marks.
On Wednesday, her father, Urfan Sharif, and stepmother, Beinash Batool, were found guilty of her murder.
Her uncle, Faisal Malik, who lived with them, was convicted of causing or allowing her death.
Concerns about Sara's care were raised within just a week of her birth in 2013, with her parents known to social services as early as 2010.
There were three sets of family court proceedings, but allegations surrounding Sara's father physically abusing her and her siblings were never tested in court.
Surrey’s children’s services are said to have ignored multiple warnings from Ofsted that children in the area were being failed like Sara.
Reports in both 2014 and 2018 were heavily critical, with the council accused of not accepting Ofsted's assessment that it was failing, according to the Times.
"This results in children experiencing continued neglectful parenting, often including exposure to domestic abuse, and leaving them vulnerable to both acute and longer term risk through corrosive damage to their social, emotional, physical and educational development," the 2018 report said.
It came after the 2014 report said: "A significant number of children in need are not receiving the level of support and monitoring necessary to ensure their welfare and protection."
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said that questions must be answered over the "awful" case.
He said there needs to be safeguards for children, especially those being home-schooled like Sara.
Surrey county council has since announced plans for an independent safeguarding review of all professionals who had contact with Sara's family.
James O'Brien reflects on the Sara Sharif story
It comes after an interview with Sara's mother, Olga Domin, re-emerged, where she said Sharif tried to set her on fire and strangle her with a belt - before he went on to murder the 10-year-old.
He “started to strangle me with a belt” and “tried to set fire on me once - he poured oil on me, but my cousin stopped him", she said.
At the time of Sara’s death, Ms Domin told TVN24: “There was a situation when [Sharif] told me not to go anywhere. I said I was going because my friend was waiting for me. He started to strangle me with a belt then.
“He tried to set me on fire once — he poured oil on me, but my cousin stopped him.
“And he simply locked me in a room. He locked me up for the whole day until the police arrived. When they showed up, he pretended that nothing had happened, that the door was open.”
Ms Domin lost custody of Sara to Sharif and his wife in 2019. Domin claimed that Sharif was given custody of her daughter because Sara falsely claimed she had slapped her.
Sara was beaten to death four years after taxi driver Sharif was awarded custody, despite accusations of abuse against him, jurors heard.
Prosecutor William Emlyn Jones KC said Sharif created a "culture of violent discipline", where assaults on Sara had "become completely routine, completely normalised".
Speaking to broadcasters on Thursday, the PM described the case as "just awful".
He added: "It's very hard to see, to read about, for many people who will be viewing, it's just shocking.
"So that's where I start on this. Obviously, there's going to be questions that need to be answered in relation to this case."
Asked whether the Government would ban smacking children in its Children's Wellbeing Bill, he said: "I don't think that we should allow ourselves to think that whatever the rules on smacking are that's got anything to do with this case.
"This is about violence. It's about abuse. It's about making sure that (there are) protecting safeguards for children, particularly those being home-schooled. So that's where I think the questions are.
"But my response, first and foremost, is just the most awful case that many people, many viewers will find very, very, very hard to hear."
Sara was taken out of school in April 2023, and the violence against her intensified in the weeks before her death.
England's Children's Commissioner, Dame Rachel de Souza, has described it as "madness" that an at-risk child could be taken out of school, and called for a change in the law so children who are suspected victims of abuse cannot be home educated.
Following the verdicts, the Department for Education said it is "already taking action to make sure no child falls through the cracks".
A spokesperson added: "This includes overhauling children's social care and bringing in greater safeguards for children in home education so this can never be used to conceal abuse."
Commons leader Lucy Powell told Parliament on Thursday: "Can I say on behalf of the Government that nothing is more important than keeping children safe.
"We are committed to further reform of children's social care and much stronger safeguards for children being taken into home education.
"This is long overdue, and further details will be announced imminently."
Figures published on Thursday showed that local authorities in England reported 111,700 children were in elective home education this autumn term, a rise from an estimated 92,000 in the previous autumn term.
The trial heard that in January 2023, Sara had begun wearing a hijab to cover up her bruises at school.
Teachers noticed marks on her face and referred her to social services in March of that year, but the case was dropped within days and she was taken out of school by her family in April.
Separately, a report published by the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel the day after the verdicts in Sara's case showed that 485 children in England died or were seriously harmed by abuse or neglect, between April 1 2023 and March 31 2024.
Panel chairwoman Annie Hudson described Sara's case as "harrowing" as she called for a more joined-up approach to child protection, with a need for teachers, nurses, doctors, social workers, police and other professionals to share information to understand what is happening in a child's life.