The two Reports were published on Wednesday 19 August.
Significant Case Review: Brandon Lee Muir
I attended the briefing for elected members with the two authors of the jointly published reports.
Summary of Joint Report Findings
4 The Significant Case Review concludes that the violence of Robert Cunningham towards Brandon Muir could not have been predicted. In the period of less than three weeks that Cunningham became part of the family grouping with Heather Boyd and her two children, child protection staff had quickly embarked on a process of assessment and information gathering which would have led to a Case Conference on 18th March 2008.
5 In that time, both social work and health staff had seen Heather Boyd, Robert Cunningham and the children on a number of occasions, visited the home, and Heather had cooperated with a medical examination on Brandon in relation to a query about his gait.
6 The focus of attention in preparation for the Case Conference centred more on the well being of the children against the context of concern about Heather Boyd’s wider parenting skills and the home environment, rather than the threat of violence from Robert Cunningham.
7 The Significant Case Review explored in considerable detail the information known to the authorities about Heather Boyd and her children, and about Robert Cunningham. The authorities had sought to offer Heather Boyd support in her parenting role. She never utilised this to any great degree, preferring to make use of the support offered her by her parents. While she had come to the
notice of the police in the past, nothing was known of her activities in prostitution, and she had no recorded history of drug misuse. Experienced staff found no evidence of either a chaotic household or lifestyle that suggested she had a dependence on substances.
8 Both health visiting and social work staff consistently stated that Heather and her children did not stand out as giving great cause for concern. Whilst there were ongoing concerns, these never reached a threshold which prompted consideration of more formal intervention until shortly before Brandon’s death.
9 Robert Cunningham had also come to the previous attention of the police, but more significantly in this case he was known to the police, social work services and to the Children’s Reporter through his alleged involvement in domestic violence towards a previous partner.
10 The Significant Case Review explains what has changed in Dundee since the death of Brandon Muir, and where appropriate reference is also made to the Improvement Plan which has been developed in response to the recent HMIE joint inspection.
11 However, in examining the particular circumstances of the case, the two reviews identified a number of issues which have a continuing consequence for child protection policy and practice in Dundee, and some of which are of wider national interest.
