An inquiry into the stabbing of three girls has found that their murders could and should have been prevented if multiple agencies had taken steps to stop the killer. The attacker was known to mental health, social care, and counter-extremism bodies before the incident. A private hire driver, Gary Poland, witnessed the aftermath of the attack but did not immediately call 999, despite seeing children screaming and escaping the building.
Poland had been involved in a dispute with the attacker, who had left his taxi without paying after calling a lift under a fake name. The driver followed the teenager and demanded payment, but the attacker ignored him. Poland later told the inquiry that he saw six and seven-year-old children "stampede for their lives" within 30 seconds of the attack beginning. However, he drove away, called a friend, and collected another passenger before eventually calling 999 when he arrived home.
Poland explained that he had gone into "panic mode" and believed there had been a shooting, which is why he did not call 999 immediately. He expressed regret over not helping the children, describing their screams as "harrowing" and saying he can still hear them when thinking back to that day. The local council's taxi licence conditions state that drivers should call 999 if they believe a child is in serious danger of immediate harm.
The council revoked Poland's licence, citing that he did not meet the appropriate standards. The exact reason for the revocation is not publicly disclosed, as taxi licensing hearings are held in private. The government has accepted the recommendations made by the first phase of the inquiry, with the Home Secretary stating that the government owes it to the victims and their families to right the wrongs that led to the attack.
The inquiry chairman noted a "fundamental failure" by organizations and multi-agency arrangements to address the risk posed by the attacker in the years leading up to the incident. The chairman expressed his thoughts and condolences to the families and friends of the victims, emphasizing the need to learn from these failures to prevent similar tragedies in the future.
