Death probe raises concerns on records

No single agency working with a woman who killed a fellow care home resident was in full possession of the facts about her background, a review commissioned by Newcastle social services has found.

May Thrower, 83, admitted the manslaughter of Olive Garvie, 93, on grounds of diminished responsibility in June and has been detained indefinitely at a secure hospital.

Thrower, who had a history of psychiatric illness, killed Garvie by hitting her over the head with an ornamental iron at Coniscliffe Residential Home in Jesmond, Newcastle, in February 2004.

The review, carried out by Sunderland Council, finds that, across agencies, records were either “not kept, lost or destroyed in accordance with the criteria of the relevant agency”.

Newcastle Council is now commissioning a review of adult protection procedures in the city.