A teenager given a 15-year sentence for attempting to murder three people at her school in south-west Wales when she was 13 had been considered for referral to the anti-extremism Prevent programme over her interest in Adolf Hitler, according to a new inquiry.
The girl, now 15, who cannot be named for legal reasons, used a knife to stab two teachers and a pupil at Ysgol Dyffryn Aman in Ammanford, Carmarthenshire, in April 2024. She told police after her arrest: “That’s one way to be a celebrity.”
She was found guilty of three counts of attempted murder by a jury at Swansea crown court in April this year.
A multi-agency report commissioned by Carmarthenshire county council and Mid and West Wales safeguarding board published on Wednesday found that while authorities knew a lot about the girl’s state of mind and associated behaviours in the two years before the attack, it was not shared between agencies.
Teachers Fiona Elias, left, and Liz Hopkin were injured in the attack in the Carmarthenshire school. Photograph: Dyfed-Powys Police
She had “unusual interests in war memorabilia, Hitler, a fascination with weapons and purports to speak German and Russian”, the report said. She had taken a ball bearing gun with her to a previous school, had threatened to use a knife on a child at Ysgol Dyffryn Aman, and was suspended for taking a blade to school the year before the attack took place.
After the first knife possession incident, concerns about potential radicalisation meant a referral to Prevent was discussed but it was decided the girl did not meet the criteria threshold, the report found. Instead, a referral for an early action help assessment was made, but declined by the child’s father, who agreed to carry out daily bag checks.
He told Gladys Rhodes White, the review author, that he felt “services” had let the girl – referred to as Child A – and the family down. “He described occasions when he tried to get help for Child A in dealing with her emotional and behavioural issues and felt none of the services understood Child A and her needs,” the report said.
“He feels it is only since her conviction that she has started to receive help.”
The child declined to take part in the review.
The report also interviewed teachers at Ysgol Dyffryn Aman, who said they were not aware of the girl’s history, and what they did know was related to her “emotional and behavioural needs”. On the day of the attacks, pupils knew she had a knife with her but did not inform any teachers, the report said.
Rhodes White concluded that “each agency had their own pieces of the jigsaw”, but “it is important to note that no information held by agencies identified a clear ability to foresee the shocking and unexpected events which occurred in April 2024”.
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Better information sharing between agencies, and a focus on how to to support children who do not meet the threshold for Prevent, were needed, she said.
In a joint statement, Carmarthenshire county council, the school, Dyfed-Powys police and Hywel Dda University health board said they would be addressing the report’s recommendations.
The child will be eligible for release on licence after serving half of her 15-yearsentence, but could be recalled to custody.
During the sentencing, Judge Thomas KC told the teenager: “I believe what you did that day you did above all for attention … I think in a weird way you enjoyed the reaction and publicity.”
