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Serious Case Review: Violent past was a cause for concern

The sentencing of Zac Whitlock has highlighted the need for social work teams to monitor voluntary agreements closely, reports Joe Lepper.

Zak Whitlock is serving an indefinite prison sentence after hitting his baby daughter so hard she was left permanently brain damaged.

At his trial in April, medical experts told the court his daughter, who was seven weeks old when the attack took place in February 2009, had been hit against something flat and hard, possibly a wall or table.

A serious case review (SCR) into the case found that 21-year-old Whitlock had a track record of drug abuse, violence and mental illness.

But despite this, Leicestershire County Council's social work team failed to put the baby's needs first. They were too ready to empathise with Zak and the baby's mother as young parents and were over-optimistic about their parenting skills.

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