Marcia Grant: Warning signs missed before death of Sheffield foster carer, inquest told

Marcia Grant, 60, had been working as a foster carer for seven years when she suffered fatal injuries as she tried to stop the boy taking her car outside her home in the Greenhill area of Sheffield on April 5, 2023.

The inquest into the death of Mrs Grant resumed at Sheffield Medico‑Legal Coroners’ Court on Friday (Jun 27).

Witnesses gave recollections of distress signals raised as far back as late March 2023.

One supervising social worker recalled reports from March 31 that Child X “did not get on with the other child and wanted to run away.”

The social worker, Ms Goodacre, also spoke of “unacceptable and inappropriate sexualised comments” made by Child X —critiqued in court as “deeply concerning”.

The court heard that, despite the warning signs, none of the concerns appeared in the placement paperwork.

When confronted, the supervising social worker said: “That information should have been recorded.”

These omissions, she admitted, were discussed internally in emails and strategy meetings—but were never formally logged in crucial documents.

The court then scrutinised the absence of the mandatory 72‑hour placement review.

On several occasions, social worker Ms Goodacre could not recall attending any review, explaining it may have fallen to other colleagues.

“That may have been another worker’s responsibility,” she said, casting doubt on whether the statutory safeguard ever took place.

Details also emerged about the day-to-day operational struggles within the placements team.

Jane Smith, Strategic Commissioning Manager, explained that while emergency out-of-area placements were an option, they came with risks.

“We feel limited… but we will ask if there is anything else,” she said as she described the team’s dependency on incomplete referral forms.

Ms Smith told the inquest she could not verify if referral information was accurate or complete.

She said: “We’re not in a position to know whether potentially relevant information is missing from the form.”

On March 30, Child X was moved into an urgent, six‑day, out‑of‑county placement with Mrs Grant— one that was neither full-time nor reviewed for long-term suitability, the inquest heard.

Ms Smith told the inquest ongoing planning should have been put in place and highlighted a wider shortage of teenage placements as a factor.

“They are very difficult to find”, she added.

The inquest will continue on Tuesday (Jul 1).