Info & Resources - Submissions

The Bichard Inquiry 2003/4

The Bichard Inquiry was set up by the Home Secretary following the conviction of Ian Huntley for the murders of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman in Soham, Cambridgeshire. Huntley was a school caretaker at Soham Village College and had been subject to vetting for the post, including police checks. These revealed no relevant information about him. Huntley had previously lived for some time in Humberside and after the verdict, Humberside Police disclosed that between 1995 and 1999 there had been a series of incidents involving allegations of sexual offences  committed by Huntley.

The Inquiry examined the effectiveness of Humberside and Cambridgeshire police forces' relevant intelligence-based record keeping, vetting practices and information sharing with other agencies. The Bichard Inquiry Report draws conclusions on these matters and makes recommendations that are relevant for police, social services, education establishments, vetting departments and the Government to protect children and the vulnerable nationally.

F.A.C.T. made a detailed submission to this inquiry which you can download here (requires a PDF reader)