A MOTHER whose two sons died in a house fire started by their dad has reiterated the need for a law change following the conclusion of a court case which saw a father and stepmother collectively receive more than 70 years in prison.
Inspirational Claire Throssell, from Penistone, lost Jack and Paul ten years ago but spoke out following last week’s sentencing of Urfan Sharif and Beinash Batool, who were convicted of murdering ten-year-old Sara Sharif.
Presumption of contact rules meant that in both cases Jack and Paul and Sara’s fathers were granted unsupervised access to their children, despite history of domestic abuse allegations.
Claire - who recently handed in a 105,000-strong petition to Downing Street urging the government to put an end to avoidable child deaths - called on ministers to prioritise the safety of children by ending unsafe child contact with perpetrators of domestic abuse.
She said: “In the ten years since Jack and Paul’s murders, sadly more innocent children’s lives are still being taken due to the dangerous practice and culture that remains in family courts due to presumption of contact between abusive parents and their children.
“Contact at any cost must end and presumption has no place in a court of law.
“Sara is tragically another example of how parental rights are prioritised over the rights of a child.”
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 while Sara was hooded, burned and beaten during a two-year ‘campaign of torture’ before her body was found at the family home in Woking, Surrey, in 2023.
‘Sadistic’ Sharif was told he will spend a minimum of 40 years behind bars while Batool will serve a minimum of 33 years.
Marie Tidball, MP for Penistone and Stocksbridge, spoke in Parliament before Christmas and urged for a change in the law to prevent contact being granted.
“Ten years ago in Penistone, Paul and Jack Sykes were horrifically murdered by their abusive father, who set their house on fire,” Ms Tidball told the Chronicle.
“While in the family courts, their mother Claire repeatedly warned that their father had a history of domestic abuse and was a danger to the children’s lives.
“Presumption of contact meant he was granted unsupervised children of the boys.
“A decade later, last week saw the sentencing of Sara Sharif’s father and stepmother, who murdered her.
“They were both granted supervised contact with Sara, despite the fact her father had been arrested previously for domestic abuse allegations.
“Tragically, the presiding legal principle of presumption of contact, means the father of brothers Jack and Paul, and Sara’s father - both of whom with a known history of domestic abuse - were granted unsupervised contact with their respective children.
“My constituent Claire, promised her sons that no other children would die in the same tragic circumstances.
“Too many children have died at the hands of known domestically abusive parents who have been granted unsupervised contact in the family courts.
“We need to change the law on presumptive contact in order to prevent further child deaths at the hands of known domestically abusive parents.”
Leader of the House of Commons Lucy Powell MP confirmed the government’s commitment to protect vulnerable children.
“We are bringing in reforms, especially to areas such as home schooling and kinship care, and support for children’s services and children’s social workers,” she added.
“We presented the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill last week, but that is just a start.
“I look forward to working so we ensure that this never happens again.”
* If you or anyone you know needs support with domestic abuse, in Penistone they can call 03000 110 110 or email info@idas.org.uk. The National Domestic Violence Helpline can be contacted on 0808 2000 247 and is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
