Harley Watson: Schoolboy 'let down' by police - commissioner

A 12-year-old boy who died after a man with schizophrenia drove into a crowd of schoolchildren was let down by a police force, its commissioner said.

Harley Watson was hit outside Debden Park High School in Loughton, Essex, on 2 December 2019.

Terence Glover, 52, was detained indefinitely under the Mental Health Act last year.

Police, fire and crime commissioner for Essex, Roger Hirst, said "much more could and should have been done".

On Thursday, an inquest ruled Harley was unlawfully killed.

The jury said failings by Essex Police and mental health services had "possibly" contributed towards his death.

The nine-day inquest in Chelmsford heard Glover, who was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, made repeated 999 calls in the months before the crash, where he said he "might run some schoolchildren over".

He was arrested in September 2019 on suspicion of making malicious communications, but following a mental health assessment - which lasted less than three minutes - he was not detained, the inquest heard.

The jury said Glover had not been properly assessed and an opportunity to prevent Harley's subsequent death was missed.

Jurors concluded police had not put sufficient resources into the case, they did not pass concerns about Glover across departments and releasing Glover from custody had been a "failure".

Mr Hirst said: "It is clear to me from the evidence provided throughout the inquest and the jury's narrative conclusion that much more could and should have been done prior to the incident.

"We work hard within the emergency services to protect people and make their lives better, but in this case, collectively we let Harley down.

"I am truly sorry for that."

Mr Hirst said the force's chief constable had "assured" him that "significant improvements have already been implemented".

"Improving how the force identify, assess, respond to and share with partners the threats they receive, especially when this relates to cases where mental health appears to be a factor, is vital to reduce the risk of such as awful situation happening again," he said.

Speaking after the inquest, Deputy Chief Constable Andy Prophet, apologised for the "failings by Essex Police identified at the inquest"

"We have delivered more training to our contact handlers and our colleagues who respond to the calls we receive for help," he said.

A spokeswoman for Essex County Council, which has an adult mental health team, apologised to Harley's family "for the shortcomings of the Mental Health Act assessment performed on Mr Glover on 30 September 2019".

The authority said it had since improved its operating procedures and implemented "safer practices".

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