Mum 'confident' of law change after sons' death

A mother whose two sons were killed by their father has said she is "confident" of a change in the law to protect other children.

Jack, 12, and Paul, nine, died in October 2014 when Claire Throssell's ex-partner Darren Sykes set fire to his house during a weekend access visit. Mr Sykes also died in the blaze.

Ms Throssell, from Penistone, has spent the past decade campaigning with the Women's Aid charity to change 'presumption of contact' law, which assumes children benefit from contact with both parents.

Earlier, MPs, led by Marie Tidball, MP for Penistone and Stocksbridge, met to debate whether the law should be changed.

"I've taken a lot of positivity out of this debate today," Ms Throssell said, adding that she was reassured the government is listening and is "really confident" change can happen.

"No other children should have to die at the hands of a parent," she said.

Ms Throssell has previously said she always knew her ex-husband was "a danger to the boys", but that she could not convince the courts or social services.

Her campaigning led to the passing of a domestic abuse bill in 2021 and she was awarded an MBE in the 2021 New Year Honours list.

In November, Ms Throssell, together with Women's Aid, presented a petition signed by more than 100,000 people calling on ministers to "prioritise the safety of children by ending unsafe child contact with dangerous perpetrators of domestic abuse".

Speaking at the time, Sophie Francis-Cansfield, Head of Policy at Women's Aid, said: "Children are being put in direct harm by an outdated presumption that overlooks the dynamic of domestic abuse and actions of perpetrators and does not align with the legal recognition of children as victims in their own right."

On Wednesday, Tidball told the BBC: "The change would make a child-centered approach, so it would put the child's interest first rather than the assumption about any contact with parents."

Sarah Sackman, Minister of State for Courts and Legal Services, said the findings of a review carried out by the previous government in 2020 would soon be published, along with a policy response.

Ms Sackman said: "It's not simply enough to have a review, it's important that we act on it."

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