Sara Sharif was ten years old and living with her father, Urfan Sharif, and his partner, Beinash Batool, when she was battered to death in August 2023. Her father is Pakistani and her mother, Olga Sharif, is Polish. The couple married in 2009 and had a son first and then Sara, born in January 2013. Childrens's Services had concerns about the family before she was born and at some stage both children were placed on a Child Protection Plan. Later on the couple separated and divorced. In 2019 custody of Sara and her older brother was given to their father who at the time was living in Surrey, with his partner, the couple's four children and his brother.

In March 2023, Sara's school noted a bruise on her chin and a dark mark on her right eye and a referral was made to Children's Services. After the investigation into the bruises the school was asked to monitor Sara. Soon afterwards her father removed Sara from school and said she was being home schooled after being bullied for wearing a hijab and the family moved to Woking. Her head teacher said that Sara would be remembered as an 'absolute chatterbox' who was 'full of energy and life'. However, a neighbour described her as quiet and reserved in the home environment.

The cruelty that Sara endured before she died must have been horrendous. She suffered more than 25 broken bones from being hit repeatedly. The failure of agencies to take the necessary protective action earlier on in her life is now difficult to comprehend. Sara was not recognised as being a child at risk who needed to be made the subject of a child protection plan. Consequently, there was no system in place for the formal monitoring of her wellbeing and safety.

The current approach to child protection is based on the idea that the response to any suspected violence against children must be informed by all the views from different agencies in contact with the child and family. Assessment of risk should also take account of cultural influences operating within the family. However, this may have the effect of giving affirmation to the disempowerment of women and girls. All this raises difficult questions for social workers about how to balance cultural awareness with their moral obligation to protect female victims within the family.

Changes in the nature of family life have created far more uncertainty about the meaning of 'good enough' parenting. When Sara's parents separated she remained with her mother. Later on her father applied for custody of her and her brother and Sara expressed a wish to live with her father. She apparently imagined that life would be better with her father. It is unclear whether social workers recognised the risks when they recommended to the court that she should live with her father.

Some parents may appear to the outside world to be completely normal - despite the fact that a hidden, emotional component of their personality interferes with their parenting capacity. For example, they may be people who avoid intimacy with another person, because of complex feelings towards an early carer, and this deeply interferes with their capacity to love. They may perceive the expression of the ordinary human needs of a dependent child as unwelcome and unthinkingly assume that their own hostile reaction to any normal, but irritating, childish behaviour is justified.

Children's social workers have a legal obligation to protect children from violence. The threshold for formal interventions against child abuse is underpinned by the legal framework - which outlines the circumstances where it is legitimate for social workers to act without consent. Unfortunately, the political response to the death of Sara Sharif has not yet focused on the child protection issues. Legislation is now being introduced so that the right to home education will no longer be automatic for parents of the most at-risk children. However, this proposed change in the law is a distraction from the very real problems in delivering an effective child protection service.

It should be recognised that the social work task of building a relationship with an unloved child can be very challenging. Clare Winnicott's insights into the value of direct work with children are interesting and her ideas can help social workers understand the difficulties in working with a troubled child and offer practical solutions. However, it is possible that Sara felt constrained by her fear of the consequences if she had spoken to anyone about her experiences in the family.

Fortunately, there is a rarely used Child Assessment Order, under the Children Act 1989, which could have been obtained. Children’s services may apply for this when they suspect a child is at risk and unable to speak openly within the home environment. A social work statement to the court would include the numerous concerns raised by agencies and information about the background and personalities of the parents.

The court can only make an order if it agrees there is reason to suspect the child is suffering or likely to suffer significant harm. If the court had granted a Child Assessment Order this would have allowed the local authority to access and assess Sara's circumstances over a period of one week. This would have given Sara the opportunity to communicate openly about her experiences within the family.

Hilary Searing

Return to Barefoot Social Worker

Handmade in Wales. © Copyright Hilary Searing 2025. All rights reserved.