Senior Conservative Councillors have urged the City Council to answer a series of questions following the convictions and sentencing for the murderers of Daniel Pelka.
Councillors John Blundell and Allan Andrews, the Leader and Deputy Leader of Coventry Conservatives, and Cllr Julia Lepoidevin, the Shadow Cabinet Member for Children’s Services, are due to meet with senior Council Officers on Monday (5 August) to discuss the tragic circumstances leading to Daniel’s death. The Conservatives are seeking urgent assurances and are calling for external assessments to take place to ensure that existing measures when dealing with suspicions of child abuse are robust.
Leading Conservatives have already held a number of meetings with Council Officers, but have complained that relevant information has been ‘hard to get’ and have raised concerns that many are ‘covering their own backs’.
Commenting, Conservative Leader, Cllr John Blundell, said: “The manner of this young child’s death has shocked us all and it is right that the Serious Case Review be allowed to conduct its investigation free from political interference. It is vital that the process is robust so that relevant organisations and agencies can learn important lessons from this tragedy.
“What is evident so far is that very senior officers at the Council, who are there to advice and support the work of elected Members, have been extremely reluctant to share information which would aid in our role to hold the Administration to account.”
Deputy Leader, Cllr Allan Andrews, said: “The Daniel Pelka trial has made for very difficult and emotional reading. A lot of people feel that relevant agencies and authorities have failed Daniel and there can be no doubt that lessons have to be learned. The Serious Case Review should aid that process so that we can better understand exactly where those failures were. There will be some very difficult questions to be answered once it is published.”
Adding, Cllr Julia Lepoidevin, the Conservative Spokesman for Children’s Services, said: “I have had great difficulty getting to grips with Daniel’s murder. I can understand and appreciate people’s frustrations and anger that more was not done to help him by all of the agencies involved.
“I have not seen the draft Serious Case Review despite having asked to see it as the Shadow Member. We have a series of questions to pose that are appropriate to be answered alongside the Serious Case Review that focuses solely on the role of the Council and the then Administration. I would urge answers and a constructive discussion on these important matters.”
The questions being posed by Conservative Councillors are:
- When were concerns about the abuse of Daniel Pelka first raised, either formally or informally, with the relevant Cabinet Member (Children, Learning & Young People)?
- What instructions did he give to senior Council Officers after learning of the alleged abuse or concerns of professionals?
- When did the Cabinet Member bring this matter to the attention of Cabinet colleagues, either informally or formally? If the Cabinet Member did not, why not?
- When did the Cabinet Member bring this matter to the attention of the (then) Leader or Deputy Leader of the Council? If the Cabinet Member did not, why not?
- How many meetings or briefings did the Cabinet Member have with relevant Council Officers about Daniel Pelka or his family since he first became aware of the allegations?