Social workers spent three 30-minute sessions with the Southport killer after he went into his old school armed with a knife and attacked a fellow pupil with a hockey stick, the inquiry has heard.
Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, were stabbed to death at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class on 29 July last year by Axel Rudakubana, who was aged 17 at the time.
On 19 February 2020, Rudakubana, then aged 13, received a 10-month referral order following his guilty plea to assault occasioning actual bodily harm, possession of an offensive weapon in a public place and possession of a bladed article.
The order required him to follow a number of courses and to participate in education but there were no notes from phone contact made by the Lancashire council youth offending team (YOT) with Rudakubana during the first COVID lockdown.
Nicholas Moss KC, counsel to the inquiry at Liverpool Town Hall, said: “The benchmarks here for intervention are incredibly low, aren’t they – keep in touch with the YOT, try to speak to teachers?”
Sarah Callon, Lancashire County Council’s senior manager of the youth justice service, said it was “very difficult because we do all remember the uncertainties of COVID“.
Timeline of sessions
Following the end of lockdown, on 16 July 2020, Rudakubana refused to see his social worker but there was no “enforcement action” because it was put down to his autism spectrum disorder.
On 21 July, they worked through a “no knives, better lives” worksheet and Rudakubana told the worker “he would not take a knife out again”.
On 2 August, they went through a “victim awareness” course but asked if he could apologise to the other pupil – who was a friend – Rudakubana “struggled with the concept” and talked about how he felt he was being bullied by a different pupil.
On 20 August, an “anger management and emotional regulation” course led to a discussion about the possibility of using music to “diffuse anger” and Rudakubana was reported as “engaging well” and said he would try it.
However, Mr Moss said: “In truth, those three 30-minute sessions are the totality of any focused educational-type interventions dealing with risk?”
Ms Callon said: “It would appear so.”
Rudakubana ‘again refused to talk to social worker’
The barrister said Rudakubana should have been considered at high risk of reoffending and high risk of serious harm – although the YOT had assessed him as medium risk.
On 9 September, Rudakubana again refused to speak to his social worker, John Fitzpatrick, but he was not sent back to court because the fact that Rudakubana had been into his pupil referral unit was counted as a “contact” that contributed to the referral order.
On a home visit on 15 September, Rudakubana refused to see his social worker and his father, Alphonse, explained that Rudakubana was still angry at him for cutting the grass over where his pet hamster was buried.
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On 19 January, two days before the case was closed, it was noted that Alphonse had slapped his son as part of an argument.
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It emerged that Rudakubana had snatched his father’s laptop and was threatening to break it but when his father tried to grab it off him, he kicked him in the groin, causing him to slap him.
Mr Moss said that it turned out Rudakubana had been the instigator of the violence but the focus was on advice to Alphonse to avoid physical chastisement and strategies to avoid similar situations.
“The service was meant to be dealing with the risk of reoffending, and AR’s tendency towards violence, and it doesn’t seem to even be thought about,” he added.
The inquiry continues.
