On 12th February 2026, the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel publishes its findings following the death of baby Victoria Marten.
Key findings and recommendations include:
- Earlier and stronger pre‑birth safeguarding, including national guidance that explicitly includes vulnerable unborn babies and infants, and clearer protocols for responding to concealed or late‑disclosed pregnancies
- Trauma‑informed practice, to help reach families who do not engage with services, recognising that avoidance of services often reflects grief and mistrust rather than deliberate refusal
- Better engagement with and support for parents before and after child removal, to help break cycles of harm and reduce repeat risk
- A preventative ‘Think Family’ approach, bringing together adult and children’s services to provide a holistic view and identify issues that affect the whole family unit
- Stronger links between children’s social care and offender management services, especially when serious sex offenders are parents or carers
- Clearer arrangements when families move, including formal information transfer, shared chronologies and defined safeguarding responsibility
Panel Chair, Sir David Holmes CBE said:
“Few tragedies are greater than the death of a baby, and baby Victoria’s is all the more devastating because her parents caused it.
…
“A key lesson from baby Victoria’s story is clear: to protect vulnerable babies better, we must support their parents too. That may be hard to hear and hard to understand, but it is essential if we are to stop cycles of harm from repeating. Safeguarding professionals need the time, skills and resources to understand why families disengage and to address the underlying issues – whatever they may be – domestic abuse, substance use, mental health, trauma after previous child removals or anything else.
Read more here.
Original reporting by Family Law Week