Western Morning News (Saturday)
Report seeks to avoid repeat of murder by carer
AN independent safeguarding review into the death of a 77-year-old disabled pensioner who was brutally murdered in her home by her carer has resulted in recommendations being made to improve current and future services to vulnerable people in Devon.
Michael Robinson was jailed for at least 30 years for strangling and kicking Carol Hart to death during an attack in her home in Northam, near Bideford, in January 2021.
The 35-year-old killed the former hairdresser to silence her, after she discovered he had stolen half her life savings and reported him to the police and his employers. Following the trial and an inquest into Carol’s death, a Safeguarding Adult Review (SAR) has been published this week by Torbay and South Devon Adults Partnership.
The review was carried out to delve into the care and support she received, and to look at how different agencies, from health trusts to the police, worked together to safeguard Carol.
The report has concluded with nine recommendations being made, which have been accepted by the partnership. They include reminding adult social care providers about safe recruitment practices and providing guidance about employing staff who have criminal convictions to work with vulnerable people. The report states that Robinson, who had no previous experience as a carer but became Carol’s main carer, had a number of criminal offences between 2003 and 2007, including actual bodily harm (ABH).
Paul Northcott, the independent chair of the Torbay and Devon Safeguarding Adults Partnership, said: “The detailed report that has been published today highlights a number of areas of learning that we as a partnership will need to implement to prevent such tragic circumstances from happening again.
“Those lessons that are contained in the report are wide-ranging and not confined to one agency, but point to a number of improvements that can be made nationally and locally. We will continue to monitor the progress towards implementing these recommendations, and we will ensure that they are acted upon in a timely manner.”
The report gives a detailed insight into Carol’s life and care needs. Devon County Council commissioned Complete Quality Care via its contract with Devon Cares, a trading name of Devon Healthcare NHS Trust, to support her from April 13, 2020. The organisation has twice been inspected by the Care Quality Commission and on each occasion was rated as ‘good’. The most recent inspection was published in March 2019.
It is reported that Robinson was employed by Complete Quality Care from April 26, 2018, until January 15, 2021, and had no previous employment experience in a caring role. His previous job was refuse loading and street cleaner deliveries with Devon County Council.
Complete Quality Care’s staff file for him recorded a number of criminal offences between 2003 and 2007, between the ages of 18 to 22 years, including destroying property, being drunk and disorderly ABH. His Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) certificate disclosed two offences of possession of drugs, cocaine and cannabis, in 2017.
It is added it was noted that no action had been taken by police regarding the drug offences and Robinson understood that, if there were any concerns regarding his drug use, the company would terminate his contract of employment.
Carol’s previous experience of domestic abuse meant she was reluctant to have male carers. However, she was said to have got on very well with Robinson, and he eventually became her sole care worker. He is said to have killed her in the early hours of January 11, 2021.