Harlow social services review over murder of baby

Eloddie Goncalves was subject to a social services safety plan, stipulating that she must not drink alcohol

Safeguarding professionals are conducting a review after a woman known to social services murdered her 11-week-old baby.

Eloddie Goncalves was found guilty this week of killing Malik Goncalves at her flat in Harlow in August 2020.

The 33-year-old was subject to a social services safety plan stipulating that she must not drink alcohol or be left alone with Malik.

Essex County Council said the case was being assessed.

A spokesman said: "This was a terribly tragic loss of such a young life.

"Essex Safeguarding Children Board (ESCB) is carrying out a Child Safeguarding Practice Review into the case, as is usual practice in these circumstances. It would be inappropriate to comment further until this is concluded."

The Essex Safeguarding Children Board is made up of professionals from the county council, the NHS and police

A six-week trial at Chelmsford Crown Court heard social services raised safeguarding concerns about Goncalves while she was pregnant and she took part in a "child protection conference" in May 2020, which discussed her mental health issues and drug and alcohol misuse.

Her baby was born on 1 June and about three weeks later, on 24 June, police were called to the flat in Joyners Field and found Goncalves "handling [her child] in a rather unsafe manner, slurring her words, unsteady on her feet".

Frequent visits

She was arrested on suspicion of child neglect, but released with no further action and social services implemented a safety plan the following day.

The plan's conditions stipulated:

• she must not drink alcohol

• must not be left alone with the baby

• that her partner must take Malik to her parents and contact police if Goncalves was drinking

• she should contact the Open Road charity over her alcohol abuse

Jurors were told social workers visited frequently.

However, Malik was declared dead at the flat on 19 August after Goncalves called 999 and a post-mortem examination found he died from multiple injuries.

Ms Goncalves told emergency services someone "came in the house" in Joyners Field via her window

Goncalves was found guilty of murder, cruelty to a person under 16, assaulting an emergency worker and perverting the course of justice.

Her partner Muritala Olaiya-Imam, 37, who was told during the investigation that he was not the baby's biological father, was found guilty of allowing the death of a child, cruelty to a person under 16 and perverting the course of justice.

The pair are due to be sentenced in October.

The ESCB, chaired by former social services director David Archibald, is made up of professionals from the council, the NHS and Essex Police.

Reviews - according to the ESCB website - take place in order to identify improvements, to prevent the "risk of recurrence" and establish lessons that can be learnt.