Safeguarding authorities missed four crucial opportunities to save the life of five-year-old Dylan Scanlon who was poisoned and beaten to death by his mother in Oldham, an independent review has found.
Claire Scanlon, 39, was jailed for life with a minimum term of 18 years in July 2023 after being convicted of murdering her son on New Year’s Eve 2021. Paramedics found Dylan’s badly bruised body on her bed at their home in Elm Road, Limeside, pronouncing him dead just three minutes after arrival.
A damning independent safeguarding review has now exposed how the response to welfare concerns about Dylan was “inadequate”, “ineffective” and highlighted a “systemic sub-optimal approach to multi-agency working” that ultimately failed to protect the vulnerable child.
Pattern of Missed Opportunities
The review identified four specific occasions when concerns raised about Dylan’s safety and wellbeing were not followed up adequately by authorities:
The first warning sign came when Dylan was just 13 months old, found crawling alone along the street outside the family home by a passing social worker. Despite this alarming discovery, the Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) care plan developed in response was described as “superficial” and “lacking any real purpose or ambition” for the toddler.
When Dylan was three years old, a dietitian raised concerns that Scanlon “did not fully understand” her son’s health needs. The review found the response to this professional’s referral was “inadequate”, representing another missed opportunity to intervene.
Just before Dylan’s fourth birthday, an anonymous caller contacted MASH reporting disturbing conditions at the family home. The caller described heaps of rubbish outside the property and said Dylan had been seen “playing alongside rats”.
Despite this chilling account, no further action was taken. A health visitor who had last attended the home three months earlier claimed conditions were adequate – a decision the review has now deemed “misplaced.
Final Warning Ignored
The most devastating failure came approximately six months before Dylan’s murder, when another anonymous person contacted police, social workers and his school with serious concerns. The caller reported that neighbours were worried about Dylan’s welfare, stating he “always looks very dirty, unkempt and the house is filthy”.
The informant also alleged that Scanlon “smoked weed on a daily basis” and often forgot to pick Dylan up from school.
Tragically, this final warning went unheeded due to what the review describes as an “incredible” misunderstanding between Greater Manchester Police and social services. Both agencies assumed the other was responding to the concerns, despite staff being physically located together where they could have easily checked who was taking action.
It seems incredible that this misunderstanding occurred considering the staff concerned were physically located together, meaning it would have been easy for them to check who was actually going to respond,” the review stated.
Brutal Murder
On 31 December 2021, Claire Scanlon gave her son a massive overdose of her prescribed antidepressant medication, mirtazapine, before inflicting a brutal beating that left him with 64 separate injuries to his head and body.
Toxicological analysis revealed Dylan had 9,951 micrograms of the drug per litre of blood in his system – nine times what would be fatal in an adult. Pathologist Dr Charles Wilson, who conducted the post-mortem examination, said the injuries Dylan suffered were consistent with children who had been beaten by adults.
When family members found Dylan lifeless in the bedroom at approximately 6.15pm, Scanlon initially claimed a ladder had fallen on him. She later told paramedics he had fallen down steps, but police found a note in the house saying “Don’t let them see us, just cremate us”, which prosecutors said showed she had planned to die alongside her son.
Mother’s Deteriorating Mental State
Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court heard that Scanlon had become “angry and depressed” following the breakdown of her relationship with Dylan’s father, Gary Keenan, in 2020. She had inherited Huntington’s disease, a degenerative and incurable brain condition, from her mother – something she called a “death sentence.
In the days before the murder, Scanlon sent abusive messages to Mr Keenan, telling him he would never see his son again. One message read: “You’re just showing all you want to do is act like me and Dyl weren’t in your life and crack on, make a new life with your new bird. So you go and do that. I’ll solve it for you.”
Prosecutor Lisa Wilding told the court Scanlon had collected a repeat prescription for mirtazapine just 11 days before killing Dylan.
“Remorseless” Killer
Justice Amanda Yip, sentencing Scanlon who refused to attend court, said: “Dylan was five when he died. He was an active, happy little boy. He had just started primary school and his teachers spoke warmly of him. He was very much loved. This is a very sad case.”
You went from being a good mother who loved Dylan very much to murdering him. You are the only person who knows exactly what happened, but you have not told the truth.”
The judge acknowledged that Scanlon’s Huntington’s disease may have affected her behaviour but said it was “no excuse” for murdering her son.
Senior Crown Prosecutor Nicola Carter described Scanlon as “remorseless”, stating: “Claire Scanlon’s role as a parent was to love and protect her son from harm, but she took the ultimate step to take her young son Dylan away from her ex-partner.
Authorities Respond
Oldham Council described Dylan’s murder as “tragic” and said there had been “a lot of soul searching and reflection to see what could have been done differently”.
A council spokesperson said: “Oldham Children’s Services and the safeguarding partnership are now in a much different place compared to 2021. Our processes for keeping children safe were reviewed at the time and have been improved.
“This of course is not making us complacent. Cases like Dylan’s are a terrible reminder of why we commit to continually improving and challenging ourselves, and hold each other to the highest standards of care.”
Greater Manchester Police acknowledged the failures highlighted in the review, with a spokesperson saying: “We recognise and regret the failures that have been highlighted in the review, particularly the issue regarding communication with partners. This has been addressed and effective partnership working remains a firm focus.”
“Protecting children is our top priority in Greater Manchester and we work closely with all our local partners to keep children safe.”
Father’s Tribute
Dylan’s father, Gary Keenan, who gave evidence at the trial, paid tribute to his son: “Dylan was cruelly taken away from us on New Year’s Eve in 2021 by the one person who was supposed to love and protect him.”
He will be missed every minute of every day, and we cannot put into words how difficult it’s been to endure the trial and to listen to how Dylan came to his death. There will always be a massive hole in our hearts at the loss of Dylan.”
Senior Investigating Officer Phil Reade said: “Our thoughts remain with those who knew and loved Dylan – particularly his dad and brother. We understand the conclusion of criminal proceedings will not heal their broken hearts but we do hope that this brings them a step closer to closure.”
The independent review’s findings serve as a stark reminder of the catastrophic consequences when safeguarding systems fail society’s most vulnerable members – consequences that in Dylan’s case proved tragically fatal.
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