Mother of Baby P begins latest bid for release

The mother of Baby P was recalled to prison last year after she started a relationship with a man she met online without telling officials supervising her, a parole hearing has been told.

Tracey Connelly was first jailed at the Old Bailey in 2009 for causing or allowing the death of her 17-month-old son Peter – known as Baby P – at their home in Tottenham, north London, on 3 August 2007.

She is bidding for her latest release after being recalled to prison for a second time, in August 2024, for breaching her licence conditions.

Wednesday’s hearing was told the situation “closely mirrored” that of her first recall and her conduct in custody – when she also developed intimate relationships.

Baby P suffered more than 50 injuries, including fractured ribs and a broken back, despite being on the at-risk register and receiving 60 visits from social workers, police officers and health professionals over eight months.

The parole hearing panel was told by her prison offender manager (POM) that Connelly had deleted material from her phone to avoid officials finding out about her relationship, which led to her second recall.

Panel chairwoman Sally Allbeury said a previous parole hearing had considered there to be a “major risk in the context of Ms Connelly developing an intimate relationship where she prioritises a partner’s needs and her own needs over those of children.

“Subsequent panels have had the same concerns,” she added.

Previously, Connelly failed to inform social services that others were living with her after her partner and his brother moved into the home, and a 2013 panel heard she had been keen to preserve her intimate relationships at all costs.

Giving evidence to the hearing on Wednesday, Connolly’s POM said she had kept the relationship with the man she met online a secret, for “fear of being judged”.

Ms Allbeury said Connelly was “perfectly entitled” to get involved in any kind of relationship she wanted, as long as she was open about it.

The POM is recommending Connelly should be released with a management plan.

In 2009, Connelly admitted the offence of causing or allowing the death of her son and was handed a sentence of imprisonment for public protection with a minimum term of five years.

Her then boyfriend, Steven Barker, and his brother, Jason Owen, were convicted of the same crime.

Earlier in the hearing, the chairwoman said the panel had heard “extremely moving” victim statements from the child’s loved ones.

“There can be no doubt that Peter’s death has caused lifelong harm to those who loved him,” Ms Allbeury said.

Options open to the panel include allowing Connolly’s release or recommending her transfer to an open prison.

Connolly was first released on licence in 2013 but was recalled to prison in 2015 for breaching her parole conditions. She was freed for a second time in July 2022 and recalled again two years later.

Previous parole bids, in 2015, 2017 and 2019, were rejected.