Apology issued over foster carer’s death as Rotherham Council promises service review
Marcia Grant was run over and killed by a boy in her care in 2023
Last updated 16th Jul 2025
Rotherham Council’s leader has offered a formal and emotional apology following the conclusion of an inquest into the death of foster carer Marcia Grant, and pledging to take further action.
Speaking at a full council meeting on Tuesday (16 July), Councillor Chris Read offered the council’s ‘deepest and sincerest condolences’ to the family of Marcia Grant following the close in the inquest earlier this month.
“It has been a difficult and emotional time, and we are truly sorry for their loss,” added Cllr Read.
“Marcia… was a much-loved and highly respected foster carer, a central figure within Rotherham’s foster community. She was caring and compassionate, providing a home and support to some of our borough’s most vulnerable children.”
Mrs Grant, 60, died in April 2023 after she was run over by a 12-year-old boy she had been fostering. The child, referred to as Child X, attempted to steal her car from outside her home in Greenhill, Sheffield, and struck her as she tried to stop him.
An inquest earlier this month found that shortcomings in the council’s handling of the child’s emergency placement had contributed to the circumstances leading to her death. Assistant coroner Marilyn Whittle issued a narrative verdict, highlighting serious failings in risk assessment, information sharing, and safeguarding procedures.
Cllr Read acknowledged the coroner’s findings, noting that the council had already begun making changes before the inquest began, and promised further action would follow.
“The inquest found grounds to believe that the council had played a contributing role in Marcia’s death. I am and we are deeply sorry for any failing on the council’s part.
“There is nothing more important than the safety of our children,” he told councillors.
The inquest had heard that the council’s placement referral form failed to include vital information about the child’s background, including a previous youth caution for knife possession and indications that he wanted to be part of gang culture. The coroner said that had the proper processes been followed, Child X would not have been placed with the Grant family.
Mrs Grant and her husband had been fostering for seven years and were highly regarded by the council’s own fostering team.
During the meeting, Cllr Read said the council had already taken steps to strengthen its systems, particularly around record keeping and risk assessment. He added that the council was awaiting a formal Prevention of Future Deaths report from the coroner, and a comprehensive action plan would follow.
“I’ve asked the director of children’s services to put together a comprehensive action plan… and to report this formally through our Improving Lives scrutiny committee so that members can interrogate it,” he said.
Cllr Read also paid tribute to the wider social care workforce, acknowledging the complexity and difficulty of their decisions but stressing the weight of responsibility when things go wrong.
“When it goes wrong, as it did so heartbreakingly in this case, there is nothing more serious,” he said. “My thoughts remain with Marcia’s family. We honour her memory today in service of all our foster carers who do so much to make the world a better place.”
The boy was sentenced to two years in prison in November 2023 after admitting causing Mrs Grant’s death by dangerous driving after a murder charge was dropped.