Families of the 2023 Nottingham attack victims declared at a press conference on Monday that public agencies completely failed to protect their loved ones.
They urged the government to address institutional shortcomings exposed during a recent public inquiry into the perpetrator, Valdo Calocane.
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Calocane, who has paranoid schizophrenia, fatally stabbed 19-year-old students Barnaby Webber and Grace O'Malley-Kumar, along with 65-year-old caretaker Ian Coates, in June 2023.
He also injured three others using Mr. Coates's stolen van.
Inquiry Reveals Widespread Failures
A public inquiry into the incident commenced in February and concluded its evidentiary hearings last week.
The proceedings revealed significant operational lapses by both the National Health Service and local police forces prior to the killings.
Emma Webber, mother of victim Barnaby Webber, expressed profound grief and frustration. "A monster was left at large in the shadows to stalk his prey," she said.
"Every single agency failed. Every single one.
Without exception."
The inquiry revealed that the Nottinghamshire Healthcare Foundation Trust's Early Intervention in Psychosis service discharged Calocane because he missed appointments.
The medical team subsequently lost track of him.
"Mental health services fail to treat and manage. Police repeatedly failed to act.
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Agencies didn't talk," Webber added. "Warnings were ignored."
Calocane had been sectioned four times by the Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust before being discharged to his general practitioner in 2022.
He was convicted in January 2024 of manslaughter and attempted murder based on diminished responsibility, receiving an indefinite hospital order.
Families Seek Accountability and Reform
Dr. Sinade O'Malley-Kumar, mother of Grace O'Malley-Kumar and a medical doctor, criticized the psychiatric professionals responsible for Calocane's management.
"I blame the psychiatrist for discharging him without so much as a decent discharge letter," she said.
The families have publicly disputed the legal outcome, arguing that Calocane should have faced murder convictions.
Dr. O'Malley-Kumar has requested that the General Medical Council investigate the fitness to practice of the psychiatrists involved.
Lee Coates, son of victim Ian Coates, also spoke out against the conduct of authorities.
"The inquiry has shown catastrophic failures from all services and agencies involved," he said. "It has shown a lack of candour and blatant cover ups."
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The bereaved families are seeking a formal meeting within the next month with the Prime Minister, the attorney general, the home secretary, and the justice minister to demand institutional reforms.
