Alfie Steele: West Mercia Police says lessons will be learnt from failings highlighted in new report
The nine year old died in February 2021 after months of abuse by his mother Carla Steel and her partner Dirk Howell, who were jailed last year
West Mercia Police says it's committed to learning lessons after a report found opportunities were missed to save Alfie Steele in Droitwich.
The nine year old died in February 2021 after months of abuse by his mother Carla Steel and her partner Dirk Howell, who were jailed over his death last year.
The multi-agency review highlighted learning points, practice considerations and recommendations for a number of agencies, including West Mercia Police.
Assistant Chief Constable Rachel Jones from West Mercia Police said:
“We continue to extend our deepest condolences to those who knew Alfie, who will forever miss his warm infectious smile and sense of humour. The loss his family has experienced is immeasurable.
“Alfie’s family and you, our local communities, deserve to have faith that authorities, including police, will do everything in their power to keep children safe and stop those intent on causing harm and suffering. This is why it is important that you understand the partnership’s actions prior to Alfie’s murder, and the measures put in place to ensure children are listened to and kept safe.
“In the immediate aftermath of Alfie’s murder, we carried out an initial review of West Mercia Police’s involvement with the family. As a direct result, enhanced training has been put in place for our front-line officers and staff to ensure they fully understand the signs of vulnerability, that they are professionally curious and don’t take information on face value. We’ve also worked to ensure that our officers and staff are aware of and consider alternative measures available to us alongside criminal proceedings, such as civil orders.
“After Alfie’s case had been heard in court, we made a referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct to ensure independent assessment of our contact with the family. This investigation remains ongoing, but we have committed that the findings will be shared with you as soon as they can.
“We fully support the recommendations of the review and are absolutely committed to working within the partnership to continually develop and improve safeguarding measures for vulnerable children and young people.
“It is with the greatest sadness that we will never be able to undo the dreadful abuse Alfie suffered. Our thoughts remain with all those who knew and loved Alfie.”
Malcolm Johnson is a lawyer specialising in cases involving child abuse. He's told us the case involved a lot of complex issues:
"Where you have a couple of care givers where both are backing each other up and are prepared to lie, it's very difficult indeed.
"At several points I believe Alfie was interviewed by a social worker and he was interviewed on his own.
"It's not the child's responsibility to disclose abuse."