Bichard calls for progress report on Soham
Sir Michael Bichard has called on the Government to reveal what progress has been made on improving police vetting procedures.
His inquiry was set up to report into intelligence failures and how Ian Huntley managed to get a job as a school caretaker despite having been investigated on numerous occasions for rape and underage sex. Huntley was convicted in 2003 of the murders of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman.
When the Bichard Inquiry reported in June this year, it found numerous mistakes had been made by both social workers, education authorities and Cambridgeshire and Humberside Police.
Details of nine separate allegations of rape, indecent assault and sex with underage girls against Huntley, whilst he was living in Grimsby, were not passed on to Cambridge Police. In addition, Humberside Police failed to maintain any record of the allegations, even though he had been charged in one case and an officer had written a case file describing Huntley as a serial sex offender.
Cambridge Police also failed to run an adequate vetting check on Huntley, with a number of human errors identified. The school was also criticised for failing to follow up Huntley’s references.
At the time, Home Secretary David Blunkett described the Bichard Report as a “watershed in how police forces and authorities will work together to procure intelligence and information systems needed to do the job.”
He also backed a suggestion that the inquiry should reconvene after six months to assess progress. As five months has now elapsed, Sir Michael has called on the Government to report on the progress made.
Speaking today, he said: “I have asked the Home Secretary to provide an account of what the Government has achieved; what is intended by when and whether the necessary resources have been allocated.
“Informal reports of progress have so far been reassuring and I hope to be able to report favourably on all that has been achieved by Government and others with whom they have been working.”
Sir Michael has asked for all information to reach him by December 22nd, with a full response likely to be published in March 2005. Any other submissions from relevant organisations will also be considered.
