Nimroy Hendricks, a talented musician known as Nim, was fatally stabbed on 27 October 2020 by Child A, who had been identified as profoundly vulnerable and traumatised by West Sussex Youth Justice Services and Social Services.
Child A had been a victim of multiple serious sexual offences and exploitation in her early life and exhibited a history of severe violence, including robberies and attacks on police officers and members of the public. This culminated in an attack in which she stabbed her mother.
Despite being on a Child Protection Plan and known to pose a high risk of harm to herself and others, she had not received critical therapeutic support recommended by professionals before she was returned to her mother’s care following being held on secure remand for the stabbing.
In September 2020, Child A’s behaviour deteriorated dramatically, resulting in violent assaults that forced her and her mother into temporary hotel accommodation, further exposing Child A to sexual exploitation. After threatening her offender manager and becoming increasingly unstable, her risk level was assessed as “high”. Authorities failed to specifically assess or mitigate the risk to Nim, despite knowledge of her threatening behaviour and his role in Child A’s life.
In late October, Child A’s mother informed social services that she planned to leave Child A in Nim’s care. No additional support was provided to Child A or Nim. After Child A went missing, her mother explicitly warned police of her daughter’s threats to stab her and requested secure accommodation. When police located Child A, they left her in the early hours of 27 October with an unsuitable individual with a history of violence and drug offences. This individual gave the police a false address, which they did not check. Later that day, social services failed to attend a crucial strategy meeting intended to address the serious risks posed by Child A.
The Coroner concluded that the failures by Sussex Police and West Sussex Social Services potentially caused Nim’s death.
For coverage related to the case, see Sky News, BBC.
Megan Phillips and Aoibhin Spriggs of Bhatt Murphy act for the family of Nim Hendricks.
