A senior MP has demanded that officials from Surrey's children's services appear before Parliament to answer for catastrophic failings in the case of murdered 10-year-old Sara Sharif.
The call for a full parliamentary investigation follows the publication of a damning safeguarding review on Thursday, 13 November 2025, which detailed a series of missed opportunities to protect the child from her father and stepmother, who killed her in August 2023.
A Catalogue of Missed Opportunities
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson stated the report highlighted "glaring failures and missed opportunities" that led to a death she believes "could – and should – have been avoided".
Echoing this sentiment, England’s children’s commissioner, Dame Rachel de Souza, described Sara's murder as "preventable", occurring after a catalogue of poor communication and ill-informed assumptions by authorities.
The review concluded that while there was no single solution, there were "clearly several points in Sara’s life" where different actions should have been taken, and "the system failed to keep her safe."
MP Condemns Systemic Failure and Calls for Accountability
Woking MP Will Forster declared that Sara had been failed by the state "at every stage". He specifically called for the council’s executive director for children to explain to MPs why she accepted an £8,700 pay rise after Sara’s death, despite the failings within her department.
Mr Forster emphasised that all the warning signs were present but not acted upon. "She was placed on a child protection plan before being born and was a victim of domestic abuse from that day onwards," he said.
He also highlighted a critical loophole exploited by Sara's killers, stating, "It is now painfully clear that Sara’s murderers exploited loopholes in the home education system to conceal their abuse. Legislation is urgently needed to prevent this from happening again."
Council Apology and National Reforms
In response, Surrey County Council issued a profound apology for the findings. Chief Executive Terence Herbert said, "We are deeply sorry" and confirmed that robust action was being taken to address the recommendations.
Despite the council noting its service rating has improved from "inadequate" to "good" in recent years, Mr Forster remains unconvinced. He has urged the government to put the council's children's social services into special measures, stating, "I don’t think they’re fit for purpose."
On a national level, Ms Phillipson pointed to the proposed Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill and a £2 billion investment into child protection teams as part of the government's commitment to ensure no child is left invisible to safeguarding services.
Dame Rachel de Souza reiterated her call for a smacking ban and for reforms to make it impossible for children at risk to be removed from school protection under the guise of home education, stating the system is too easily manipulated by those with terrible intentions.
