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New inquiry after abused infant died like Baby P
Tim Ross11 Feb 2009
A fresh inquiry has been launched into how an infant died after suffering "horrific" abuse like Baby P.
The review comes amid concerns that authorities in Camden and Newham failed to save eight-week-old Rhys Biggs, who suffered numerous fractured ribs and a broken wrist and shoulder at the hands of his mother, Claire Biggs.He died in May 2006.
The case echoes the tragedy of Baby P, who died aged 17 months in 2007 after suffering 50 injuries including a broken back. Baby P had been seen 60 times by health and social workers but Haringey authorities failed to save him.
Rhys's former crack addict mother Biggs, 27, already had one "at risk" child taken into care. She repeatedly failed to turn up to agreed appointments with health workers.
When she did keep an appointment, a health visitor described Rhys as "active and alert", and a senior paediatric physiotherapist checked Rhys's club foot. No "abnormal marks" were noted.
Two days earlier, Biggs's live-in boyfriend, Paul Husband, 33, had called NHS Direct because Rhys had been screaming for hours and was having trouble breathing.
Both Biggs and Husband were convicted of child cruelty charges at Inner London crown court yesterday and remanded in custody to be sentenced next month.
Child protection teams in Camden and Newham said they were "sorry" for what had happened to Rhys and launched a fresh review of the case.
It comes as the man responsible for giving Haringey children's services a clean bill of health despite the Baby P tragedy has quit.
Michael Hart resigned as director of children's services at Ofsted "to pursue different career interests".
Reader views (4)
Why do the social workers always get the blame? They do a very hard job, in very difficult conditions. They did not abuse this child. I'm sure they did as much as they could with the limitations they had. They couldn't force the mother to go to sessions and if they had of done then they'd have been harranged for heavy handed tactics, taking away personal choice, personal freedom etc. The blame should lie with the person that inflicted these terrible injuries on the child, it's mother. Until we start putting the blame where it actually belongs and not on some scapegoat then this will continue to happen.
- S-M Hearmon, London, UK, 12/02/2009 09:43
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i think its disgraceful! 8 week old! if you cant look after your children, why have them! don`t they learn by baby p situation. i think the social workers should have more choice and freedom on how they want to act on something they feel that is very wrong. that y feel sorry for the workers when they find out a child has died when they could have done something about it. its a hard topic to talk about but something needs to be done! the public could help out too, mabye foster or care for,, while investigation? its very sad indeed chilren having to go through abuse!
- Rachel Hughes, wrexham, 11/02/2009 16:38
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These labour run councils always put political correction first before childrens lives. FACT !
- Joe, Swanley Kent, 11/02/2009 16:14
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I've always thought that the best way to decide if someone is fit to look after children is by thinking "would I leave my kids in the care of this person?". I would not leave my kids in the care of a woman whose first child was in care, was a crack addict and had a live-in boyfriend, even for a minute. Sorry it's not PC but I just wouldn't.
- Mick, London UK, 11/02/2009 12:39
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