INSPIRATIONAL Claire Throssell MBE hand-delivered a 105,000-strong petition to Downing Street this week urging the government to put an end to avoidable child deaths - just two weeks after commemorating the ten-year anniversary of her beloved sons’ tragic deaths.
The petition calls for the government to prioritise the safety of children by ending unsafe child contact with perpetrators of domestic abuse.
It is part of the Child First campaign, and was handed in on Monday just two weeks after the ten-year anniversary of the deaths of Jack and Paul.
The boys, aged just 12 and nine at the time, were killed by their father after he deliberately started a fire during unsupervised child contact.
This contact had been granted by the family courts because of the pro contact culture of the institution and the presumption that states children should have contact with both parents, despite Claire disclosing domestic abuse and warning that the boys were unsafe.
Initially, the petition was handed in back in 2017 with 42,000 signatures.
While it was well received, the House of Lords subsequently blocked amendments to the Domestic Abuse Bill which would have removed the presumption of child contact in family courts.
This would have prioritised the safety of children and finally put an end to unsafe contact with ‘dangerous’ perpetrators.
More than 60,000 additional people have now signed the petition which was handed into 10 Downing Street on Monday.
The Labour government has previously committed to introducing a statutory framework which clearly states the presumption does not apply where there is domestic abuse towards a child or parent in their Violence Against Women and Girls Green Paper.
Claire told the Chronicle: “It is sad that we had to go down there for a second time but I’m really grateful that we’ve been able to deliver the petition with 105,000 signatures.
“It now has to be debated in Parliament - the government can’t ignore this.
“Presumption has no place in a court of law.
“One person shouldn’t be able to presume a course of action.
“It should just be facts and the truth.”
She admitted that she is feeling more confident than she ever has done before about the campaign - and thanked each and every one of the 105,000 people who signed the petition.
“At times I thought that this day would never come,” she added.
“At times I’ve doubted whether we would be able to reach 100,000 signatures.
“From the bottom of my heart I want to thank everyone.
“Thank you for helping me keep the hope alive.”
Claire has worked alongside Women’s Aid for the campaign and she has praised the charity for everything they have supported her with.
“Women’s Aid reached out a hand and they haven’t let go since,” she said.
“Monday was a really special moment that I was able to walk to Downing Street with them.
“It was monumental.
“It was pivotal.
“I’m not going to let people down.”
A special parliamentary event in the House of Lords followed the petition hand in, urging Peers to recognise the harm that the presumption of child contact causes, and encouraging support for changes to the damaging pro-contact culture of the family courts.
Speeches were made by Sarah Hill, the chair of Women’s Aid, domestic abuse commissioner Nicole Jacobs, Baroness Ayesha Hazarika and Claire - all highlighting the urgent need to change the ‘archaic and outdated’ law.
Sophie Francis-Cansfield, head of policy at Women’s Aid, said: “The family courts have long presumed that it is in a child’s best interests to have contact with both parents, and while this doesn’t apply where there is evidence of risk of harm to a child, the strong pro-contact culture - as found and confirmed by an independent government review - often hinders the required threshold being reached.
“Children are being put in direct harm by an outdated presumption that overlooks the dynamic of domestic abuse and actions of perpetrators and does not align with the legal recognition of children as victims in their own right.
“Women’s Aid is honoured to be campaigning alongside Claire and stand in solidarity with her as she pushes for life-saving change, and all women and children who have been affected by the family courts.
“We are grateful to all the people who have signed the petition, showing the broad support for this urgently needed change to protect the lives of children.”
