Philpott Deaths Could Not Have Been Prevented

24 January 2014, 07:09 | Updated: 30 March 2016, 13:50

A report into the deaths of six children killed in a Derby house fire has found authorities could not have predicted or prevented what happened.

This morning the Derby Safeguarding Children Board has published it's findings of their serious case review into the Philpott case.

It's concluded there's no evidence that any intervention from any agency would have prevented the fire from being set by parents Mick and Mairead Philpott.

The report was carried out after national concerns were raised and a wish to understand why the fire at Victory Road in May 2012 took place.

The review says professionals could have got to know the family better but that contact would't have made any difference to the fire being started.

Chair of the Derby Safeguarding Children Board, Christine Cassell, spoke to Capital:

'The adult relationships and the configuration of this family were certainly unusual but it was not bigamous and it was not illegal.

'Concerns were not raised about the welfare of the children.

'The children actually appeared happy, well nourished, they attended school regularly, they had good social relationships both amongst themselves and with the children of other families'.

Recommendations Made

The report makes a number of recommendations, for example, that there are clearer guidelines for police officers when investigating reports of domestic violence to make sure children's details are recorded.

Mick and Mairead Philpott, and their friend Paul Mosley, were jailed in April last year for the manslaughter Jade Philpott and her brothers John, Jack, Jesse, Jayden and Duwayne.