Sheffield foster mum offered to care for boy who killed her

A foster carer who was killed by a 12-year-old boy she had been looking after had volunteered to care for him following an emergency request, an inquest has heard.

Marcia Grant, 60, died outside her home in the Greenhill area of Sheffield on 5 April 2023 when the boy reversed over her in her own car.

The boy, referred to during Monday’s hearing as Child X, was later sentenced to two years in custody after admitting causing death by dangerous driving.

Assistant Coroner Marilyn Whittle said the inquest would examine the decision to place the boy with Mrs Grant and her husband and the support provided to the couple by Rotherham Council, as well as the events leading up to her death.

Sheffield Coroners’ Court heard Mrs Grant and her husband, Delroy, were both experienced carers and were already looking after one child at the time they took on the boy’s care.

The hearing was told managers approved the temporary placement of the boy with the couple on the understanding it could only run for six days and it must be constantly reviewed.

It had been a finely balanced and child-focused decision, one manager told the court.

However, another social worker told the inquest he had not thought it was a good idea to place the boy with the couple.

He said he had been concerned about the impact it would have on the child they were already looking after.

The inquest heard that on 5 April 2023, six days after the start of Child X’s placement, he had reversed over Mrs Grant in her own car as he had attempted take it.

Mrs Grant was left with catastrophic injuries and died at the scene.

Gemma Grant, Mrs Grant’s daughter, told the inquest her mother had “a soul like no other” and had an “unshakeable moral compass”.

“To say mum’s life’s calling was to help those in need is an understatement,” she said.

Ms Grant outlined her mother’s long career working for charities and in social care, saying she always supported people who were “overlooked, dismissed or mistreated”.

She said she provided a “safe haven for children in need”, adding: “She wore the achievements of those she loved as if they were her own.”

The inquest continues.