Hospital bosses 'complicit', Letby inquiry told

Lucy Letby is serving 15 whole life sentences

Hospital bosses who ignored concerns over Lucy Letby were "complicit in the harm that was caused" and should face criminal action, a mother whose baby the nurse tried to kill has said.

The mother of baby boy Child N told a public inquiry that since the crimes of nurse Beverley Alliitt and doctor Harold Shipman, the NHS had done "nothing effective" to prevent another killing spree.

Letby targeted Child N at the Countess of Chester Hospital's neonatal unit in the early hours of 3 June 2016 by injecting him with air.

Consultants had previously raised concerns about a link between increased mortality and Letby being on shift during a number of the deaths.

Lawyers for ex-medical director Ian Harvey and nursing director Alison Kelly told the Thirlwall Inquiry they were not informed about medics' suspicions Letby was deliberately harming babies until late 2016.

Child N's mother said she hoped trust managers are held accountable for failing to investigate the whistleblowing allegations.

"A lot of the harm that Lucy Letby did could have been avoided if a thorough and prompt investigation had taken place after concerns were raised," she added.

" Ignoring these allegations or not giving them proper weight makes these people complicit in the harm that was caused.

"They shouldn't be able to continue in their roles and should face criminal action."

The nurse poisoned babies with insulin or injected air into their bloodstream

The mother added: "It should start with the people at the top. They should listen to the consultants who work day in and day out on the wards and experience and know about the day-to-day running of the NHS.

"It shouldn't be someone sitting in an office making decisions."

Child N's father added it "felt like such a kick in the teeth" that concerns raised by clinicians with management in 2015 were not taken seriously.

These were "missed opportunities to take action that could protect the children who were harmed or killed after these concerns had been raised, like installing CCTV."

He added he believed monitoring would protect babies, but also staff from allegations of harm if they were unfounded.

The parents of twins Child L and M, whom Letby attempted to murder in April 2016, also criticised hospital management.

Letby poisoned Child L with insulin and injected air into Child M's bloodstream.

Their statement said if management "had listened sooner, fewer babies would have died or been harmed".

The statement added: "Fewer families would have been bereaved and damaged. It's not enough to just say sorry to the families now."

Letby was removed from the unit in July 2016 and put in a role that did not involve working with patients.

But she worked at the hospital until her first arrest in July 2018.

She is serving 15 whole-life orders after her conviction at Manchester Crown Court of murdering seven infants and attempting to murder seven others.

The inquiry is expected to sit until early next year, with findings published by late autumn 2025

Parents of the murdered children have criticised hospital bosses for ignoring concerns about Letby