Fears raised over tragic child deaths

LIAM FEE: Documentary airs concerns over social work response

More could and should have been done to prevent the killing of three Fife children in the space of four months, it was suggested last night.

The claims emerged in a BBC documentary which shone a spotlight on events prior to the deaths of Mikaeel Kular, Liam Fee and Madison Horn. Much of the focus fell on two-year-old Liam, who was killed by his mother Rachel Trelfa and her partner Nyomi Fee at a house in Thornton.

Liam’s childminder Heather Farmer revealed how she had “wished that somebody had listened” in Fife’s social work department when she first raised concerns, while ex-social worker Lesley Bate claimed she has been made a “scapegoat” over the case – and called for others to be held accountable.

A Fife childminder has told how she believes more could and should have been done to save the life of tragic toddler Liam Fee.

Speaking in a BBC documentary last night, Heather Farmer said she “wished somebody had listened” to concerns she had raised with Fife’s social work department about injuries Liam had suffered prior to his murder on March 22 2014.

Liam died at his house in Thornton following a campaign of abuse spanning more than two years at the hands of his mother Rachel Fee, also known as Rachel Trelfa, and her partner Nyomi Fee – both of whom were jailed for life for his murder.

Heather, who was a key witness at the trial, described Liam as a “happy boy” who was “starting to find his feet” when she first met the tot, but that she soon saw bruises on his skin.

She told how his mum always gave a plausible excuse for the marks, but that her fears grew when injuries got worse.

“Obviously alarm bells started ringing,” she recalled. “And I then just had this knot in my stomach, this feeling that something was seriously not right.”

She contacted social work for some advice but put the phone down after being told: “You’re either making a complaint or you’re not.”

A week later Heather tried again and was told that a social worker and police had gone to Liam’s home and found “no cause for concern”.

Heather raised further concerns a month later that Liam could not turn his neck around and was assured by his mother that she had made a doctor’s appointment – however, after driving to the surgery and waiting outside, her fears that she was being lied to by Rachel were realised.

Heather subsequently phoned a friend in social work and explained she was still worried about Liam, but heard nothing back.

Fighting back tears, Heather said: “I just wish somebody had listened when I phoned them and somebody could have helped him.”

The programme also featured ex-social worker Lesley Bate, who claimed she has been made a scapegoat – and that others should also be held accountable.

Ms Bate was struck off in 2016 after the Scottish Social Services Council upheld 12 charges raised during her work at Fife Council.

They included a failure to record a number of visits, assess risks and refer cases to other support teams.

However, while Ms Bate admitted she had made mistakes, she stressed that she went off sick a year before Liam’s murder and that his case was not passed to another social worker.

“For any child to die in those circumstances is horrible,” she said.

“To have had any part in that, it’s a horrible feeling, but I don’t think the blame lies with me.

“At the end of the day the parents killed that child and nobody else did.”

Liam Fee, 2, Mikaeel Kular, 3, and Madison Horn, 2. All three died as a result of being abused by adults who were supposed to care for them.