Damning report into Sara Sharif 'covered up by council' due to killer father's data protection rights
Woking MP Will Forster said the council's refusal to release the documents under Freedom of Information laws was "absolutely appalling"
A damning report about 10-year-old Sara Sharif is being kept secret by the council whose blunders led to her death to protect her killer father.
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Surrey County Council is refusing to publish a domestic abuse report about Urfan Sharif because of his data protection rights.
A damning review in November detailed the missed opportunities which could have saved Sara's life.
One example was a report containing evidence of Mr Sharif's "extensive and wide-ranging domestic abuse" - which was "lost in the system".
Mr Sharif was ordered to attend a domestic violence perpetrator programme in 2016 after he was accused by Sara's mother of hitting her and her children.
However he attended just eight out of 26 sessions and experts said there was "not enough evidence" he had changed his behaviour.
Despite the report's findings, a social worker did not complete the analysis and it was not added to Sara's safeguarding report, the Daily Mail reported.
With the report omitted from her record, a judge at a family court went on to hand Sara back into the care of her abusive father despite his history of violence.
Sara was murdered in the family home in Woking in 2023 after she was victim of horrific torture for years at the hands of her father for several years.
She was hooded, tied up, beaten with a hoover and a cricket bat, burnt and bitten.
Mr Sharif and Sara's stepmother Beinash Batool were found guilty of murdering the girl in December 2024.
The MP for Woking Will Forster said the council's refusal of a Freedom of Information Request to publish the documents was "absolutely appalling".
He said: "This man is in prison for killing his daughter and Surrey County Council are concerned with data protection.
“If they cared as much about protecting vulnerable children, perhaps this would never have happened.
“This report was an opportunity to save her, but it was lost within the system. Now this is about ducking responsibility.”
A November review found Sara never should have been handed into the care of her abusive father and stepmother.
It said there was a failure to "join the dots" with social workers missing opportunities to intervene because of racial and religious sensitivities.
This included not questioning why Sara suddenly started wearing a hijab, which was done to hide her bruises, because professionals were concerned about causing "offence".
The child safeguarding practice review, examining the failures of different services responsible for caring for Sara including police, social care, health and education, said she had been a victim of abuse "from birth onwards".
It found eight areas of failure, and showed how Urfan Sharif "manipulated" safeguarding professionals.
There was also a failure of communication between different departments including police, the council and social services, the report found.
Urfan Sharif was even granted a SEND taxi license by the council to transport children with special educational needs to school before Sara's death, despite police reports of his abusive behaviour towards women and children, the Mail reported.
A spokesperson at Surrey County Council said: “The report in question was requested via the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, and related to a living person, meaning it would contain not only their personal data but also that of others within it.
“National legislation determines what can and cannot be shared under the act and, as a public authority, Surrey County Council must observe all data protection principles when processing personal data. Releasing this data, even with redactions, would have been in contravention of this.
“We encourage anyone who is dissatisfied with the handling of an FOI request to request an internal review, after which, if they are still dissatisfied, they can also exercise a right of appeal with the Information Commissioner.”