Woodmancote shootings inquest: Mother and daughters unlawfully killed

Kelly Fitzgibbons was killed at her home with Ava, four (right) and Lexi, two (left)

A mother and her two young daughters who were shot dead by the girls' father were unlawfully killed, a coroner has ruled.

Kelly Fitzgibbons, 40, died along with Ava and Lexi Needham, four and two, at their home in Woodmancote, West Sussex, in March 2020.

A conclusion of suicide was recorded for Robert Needham, 42, who turned the legally-owned gun on himself.

Ms Fitzgibbons' family are calling for tighter checks on gun owners.

The inquest in Horsham heard Needham lied on his shotgun application about a caution for theft and had not disclosed he had been treated for depression, because he did not think either were relevant.

A statement from Ms Fitzgibbons' family described the monitoring and sharing of information between police and medical professionals as a "shambles".

They said following the inquest: "We firmly believe that if Rob hadn't legally accessed a weapon that allowed him to kill them in such a fast and cowardly way, they would still be here now.

'Beautiful souls'

"We don't want Kelly, Ava and Lexi to be remembered as murder victims. We want their memory as the beautiful and very-loved souls they were to live on.

"We miss them every single day. They've left a hole in our hearts that will never ever be filled."

The inquest heard Needham shot his family after a quiet evening in on the first Saturday of lockdown, having ordered a takeaway and called his half-sister hours earlier on FaceTime.

Assistant West Sussex coroner Bridget Dolan QC said: "What is clear is that all three cruelly and needlessly lost their lives having had them taken away from them by Robert Needham."

She added: "Really why this tragedy occurred remains completely unclear."

Rob Needham was a builder who had been with Ms Fitzgibbons for 14 years

The coroner heard Needham made a firearms application to Hampshire Police, with a firearms enquiry officer (FEO) interviewing him.

During that interview Needham admitted he had not revealed a caution he received aged 25 after a bicycle theft, or that he had been treated for depression as a teenager.

He also told the officer he saw his GP in 2013 for workplace stress.

He had claimed Ms Fitzgibbons filled in the form, because she had better handwriting, an allegation rejected by her twin sister.

'Lame excuses'

The hearing was told Needham was still granted a shotgun certificate in 2016 by Sussex Police, which had received details of the investigation from the Hampshire force when Needham moved to the county.

"There's no record of any probing of these rather lame excuses whatsoever," Ms Dolan said.

"The FEO simply recorded that he had no reason to disbelieve him, but of course he doesn't even seem to have looked for a reason. There doesn't appear to have been even a cursory inquiry, things that would have been easy to do."

The family statement said: "Holding a gun licence isn't a right. It's a privilege.

"Any dishonesty on the application form or failure to declare mental health conditions or previous cautions or convictions, as in Rob's case, an individual should not expect to progress the application or be granted a firearms licence.

"Five years is not nearly frequent enough for licence holder reviews. These should be taking place annually."

Chief Superintendent Jerry Westerman of Sussex Police said: "A number of areas were examined in detail during the inquest but the coroner has not felt it necessary to issue a report relating to the prevention of future deaths to Sussex Police.

"However, we remain fully committed to maintaining public safety and recognise the importance of our role in firearms licensing.

"We have significantly changed and improved our processes since this tragic case occurred, including implementing the new statutory guidance which was introduced in 2021."

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