“All a bit of a nightmare:” Parents’
experience of professional
intervention following sudden,
unexpected child death
Denise Turner
Department of Social Work and
Social Care
University of Sussex
‘Sudden, Unexpected Death in Infancy’ a
multi-agency protocol for care and
investigation’ (Royal College of Pathologists and the Royal College of
Paediatricians and Child Health, 2004)
• Response to Sally Clark; Angela Cannings and
Trupti Patel – all released on Appeal (2003)
• Recommendations: Formalisation of ‘Rapid
Response’ :The ‘golden hour’; Investigation and interview;
crime scene …Police are required to treat the deaths as a
potential crime (ACPO, 2005).
Further Recommendations…
• Initial police investigation should be followed by examination in A & E and
a later home visit, within 24 hours if possible. This home visit should be
carried out ideally, by a ‘trained and experienced health professional’
usually a paediatrician, ‘who will have the confidence of the family and
authority with the police’ (RCPCH & RCPath, 2004, p. 2).
• A multi professional meeting to discuss the family and the death and
‘provide a …report for the coroner’ (RCPCH & RCPath, 2004, p. 3). This is
likely to be the first of several meetings, with the aim of considering ‘how
procedures at the time of the death and afterwards were managed’ (FSID,
2011, p. 6) and these meetings will usually culminate in a Case Review.
• The conclusions reached from this Case Review also lead to a report which
is sent to the Child Death Overview Panel (CDOP) formed in turn from
groups of professionals who meet several times a year to discuss child
deaths within their area and ‘report on the lessons learnt.’ ‘CDOP also
produces information and reports for Local Safeguarding Children’s
Boards….
• ‘Parents are not invited to be part of this panel …but may be invited to
contribute comments..’ (FSID, 2011, p.6)
‘Every parent has the right to have their
child’s death properly investigated..’
• ‘the family should be at the centre of procedures and every
process should be sensitive to the family’s needs’ (Kennedy
Report, p. 3)
• A thorough , systematic investigation of the circumstances
of the death based on the best available evidence and a
sensitive, caring approach to the family…the two are not
mutually exclusive’ (Sidebotham and Fleming, 2007, p.98).
• ‘given the nature and sensitivity of the subject, some
contentious issues remain…’ (Kennedy Report, p.5)
Parents Stories…
• Two uniformed officers arrived…a great big guy with full uniform
on (belt etc) and not sure if he was armed, I didn’t really look to
check (Chrissie).
• Well we had armed police, because I saw a Taser and I said ‘Is
that a Taser gun? And she said ‘no it’s a real gun’ (Andy).
• And then we had two plain clothes turn up, ‘The Child Abuse
Team’ their business cards said, or words to that effect, rather
than child protection...so you were sort of guilty until very much
proven otherwise (Andy).
• I didn’t like being in the back of a police car…when we got to our
house; several neighbours were outside keeping an eye. There
was a uniformed officer outside and a squad car (Chrissie).
‘Why Jason Died’
(Dept of Education, 2008)
•‘The reality is you can’t
make things worse…’
http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/2013
0802215754/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v
=U_F7yTVB2Iw
Recommendations 1:
Language:
One of the biggest factors that I would like to see changed is national so I
doubt it will ever happen but …I had just finished talking to the human
Policeman. He was helpful and understanding and just doing his job and I was
happy with that but I then encountered some plain clothed Detectives who
gave me a card saying ‘Child Abuse Team.’ I had just left a policeman who
basically wanted to know the story, because at the end of the day, Dylan had
come to harm, even if we hadn’t harmed him. So straightaway I go to
someone giving me a card that says ‘Child Abuse Team.’ It made me think
“Shit..Do they now think I’m guilty?’ There was a part of me that felt guilty
anyway, as I had failed as a parent because my child was dying so I couldn’t
fail any more than that. So to then have this feeling that they actually thought
that, gave me this fear of being like that solicitor that went to prison and she
didn’t do it...Sally Clark it was I think and so I knew that it happens and that
all of a sudden it’s happening to me, although I knew I wasn’t guilty. (Cathy)
Recommendations 2:
Siblings:
• Whilst Mike and I were away the Police had arrived at our house and at
that point in time my friend Sue, her daughter and Josh were still in the
house and were just preparing to go up to Sue's house….Sue was keen to
take Josh off to her house and provide him with just warmth and love. She
didn't know how much he understood about what had happened but she
knew it wasn't her place to tell him anything else other than to provide
him with a safe place until we returned. When the Police arrived at the
door, they entered and they informed Sue that she, her daughter and my
son should not leave the house. I think what happened after that is that
Sue had finally persuaded them that that was not the right thing to do in
the circumstances. I don't know exactly how that conversation went…
• Sue…understood that the most important place for Josh to be was around
his peers, his friends and comfort and not with them, but Josh obviously
remembers the Police man arriving at the house.
Recommendations 3:
Endings:
• And as I say they never…we were just kind of
left, well we never had any sort of conclusion
from the police (Ellie).
• So then the police weren’t involved after that
but they never sort of rang or got in touch, to
say or to tell us anything…we just didn’t hear
from them again (Andy).
And finally…..
• if they’d informed us it would have made such a difference. These
things didn’t have to cost very much money because I know
everything is limited resources and we can’t expect what we might
want. But a ’phone call just to check that you hadn’t hung yourself
or just a call to check that you were there or whether you needed
some sedatives. And also just to check that my other children were
all right because there was part of me that thought ‘hang on a
minute; you think I’ve killed my son, but you don’t actually care
where my other children are.’ It all seemed a bit weird because if I
had killed my son then someone needs to be looking after us or at
least asking. We were just there waiting…If you buy things off eBay
you get emails and phone calls all the time about when it’s coming
and what’s happening… but when Dylan died there was no one to
hold accountable, there was no one to go to (Cathy)
Some questions to think about…
• Thinking of the DVD can this experience be ‘made
worse’ or is it the case (as many say) that you can
never ‘do the right thing’ in these circumstances?
• Is it possible to combine ‘systematic investigation’ and
a ‘sensitive caring approach?’ And how?
• Are the potential consequences to parents and siblings
simply a regrettable part of a necessary safeguarding
process?
• Is the language used - ‘Child Abuse Team etc’ a
necessary part of that same process?
• Listening to this today, what are your immediate
emotional reactions?