In a shocking development from behind bars, convicted mother Constance Marten has launched a scathing attack on social services, blaming them for the tragic death of her newborn baby. The 38-year-old heiress, currently serving a 14-year sentence, made the accusations in new comments submitted to a national child safeguarding panel.
Marten's Bizarre Rant Against Social Workers
Marten claimed that social workers gave her "ultimatums, rather than true assistance" in the period before she disappeared with her convicted rapist boyfriend, Mark Gordon. She went further, accusing them of "using the powers of the state coercively" to take her four previous children into care. This pressure, she argued, forced her to go on the run with her fifth baby, Victoria, when the infant was just days old.
The Tragic Consequences of Their Flight
The couple's decision to evade authorities had devastating consequences. In January 2023, baby Victoria died while living in a tent on the South Downs during freezing winter conditions. Marten and Gordon, 51, had taken the newborn there to avoid social services. The child's body was discovered two months later in a disused allotment shed in Brighton, a discovery that horrified the nation.
Both parents were found guilty of gross negligence manslaughter, child cruelty, perverting the course of justice, and concealing the birth of a child. During sentencing at the Old Bailey in September, Judge Mark Lucraft delivered a damning assessment, telling the pair: "Neither of you gave much if any thought to the care or welfare of your baby: your focus was on yourselves."
National Review Calls for Urgent Reforms
In response to Victoria's death, the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel conducted a comprehensive national review. Their report, published today, calls for "urgent action" to protect vulnerable unborn babies and infants from similar tragedies. The panel has made several critical recommendations to the government.
Key Recommendations from the Panel
The report urges the government to strengthen national guidance, improve information-sharing between agencies, and ensure that professionals have adequate time, skills, and support to protect vulnerable infants. One particularly significant recommendation involves tightening registration requirements under the Sexual Offences Act 2003 regarding pregnancy. This change would mean that registered sex offenders could face prison time if they fail to inform authorities about new relationships or pregnancies.
Sir David Holmes, chair of the panel, emphasized the gravity of the situation: "Few tragedies are greater than the death of a baby, and baby Victoria's is all the more devastating because her parents caused it." He detailed the complex risks present in Victoria's family environment, including concealed pregnancies, repeated child removals, domestic abuse, lack of engagement with services, serious offending, and frequent moves.
A Broader Crisis in Child Protection
Sir Holmes highlighted that while Victoria's death was rare, her status as a vulnerable infant was not. Last year alone, more than 5,000 unborn babies and infants under one year old were on child protection plans. Many of their parents struggle with various issues and receive minimal support, often disengaging from services entirely.
"A key lesson from baby Victoria's story is clear: to protect vulnerable babies better, we must support their parents too," Sir Holmes stated. "That may be hard to hear and hard to understand, but it is essential if we are to stop cycles of harm from repeating."
Addressing Root Causes of Disengagement
The report emphasizes that safeguarding professionals need proper resources to understand why families disengage and to address underlying issues. These may include domestic abuse, substance use, mental health problems, or trauma resulting from previous child removals. "Safeguarding professionals need the time, skills and resources to understand why families disengage and to address the underlying issues - whatever they may be," Sir Holmes added.
Despite Marten's attempts to shift blame onto social services, the panel's findings suggest a more complex picture. While calling for improved support for parents, the report maintains that professionals must be better equipped to prevent such tragedies. "We cannot prevent every act of extreme parental harm - but we can reduce the risks in families and help people to move forward," Sir Holmes concluded. "That must be baby Victoria's legacy."
