A safeguarding review has revealed that council staff visited the wrong address the day before 10-year-old Sara Sharif was murdered by her father and stepmother in August 2023. The review, commissioned after her death, found that Surrey’s home education team attempted a home visit on 7 August but went to the family’s old address. The error was spotted later, but a rescheduled visit was not due until September.
The review highlighted multiple failures by agencies, including that services did not identify Sara was at risk of abuse, failed to question unexplained bruising, and underestimated the danger posed by her father, Urfan Sharif, a serial perpetrator of domestic abuse. It stated that “a great deal of information… was available but opportunities were lost to join up all the dots”.
Sara was found dead in a bunk bed after her father fled to Pakistan, leaving a note saying he had “lost it”. Sharif and stepmother Beinash Batool were jailed for life, with minimum terms of 40 and 33 years respectively. Her uncle, Faisal Malik, received 16 years for causing or allowing a child’s death.
The review criticised the lack of formal discussion when Sara was withdrawn from school in 2023, which led to her “disappearing from view”. It also noted an over-reliance on Sara’s views, despite her appearing “cheerful and loyal” while being groomed. Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson called the death “an appalling tragedy that could – and should – have been avoided”, vowing to address the “glaring failures”.
