Pilkington officers cleared of misconduct

Four police officers accused of failing to investigate the abuse that drove Fiona Pilkington to kill herself and her disabled daughter have been cleared of misconduct.

In 2007 Ms Pilkington (pictured), 38, set fire to her car and died inside it with Francecca Hardwick, 18, after years of alleged harassment by neighbours. Ms Pilkington had called the police 33 times in 10 years to complain that groups of up to 16 youngsters had repeatedly attacked her home, in Barwell, Leicestershire, with stones, eggs and flour. An inquest last year found police visited her only eight times. In a report published in May, The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) said the family should have been identified as "vulnerable" and that officers had missed opportunities to take "robust action".

But Leicestershire Constabulary cleared the quartet yesterday after concluding in an internal inquiry, overseen by the IPCC, that misconduct "was not proven". Instead the force acknowledged it had not set up systems that would have recognised the family were vulnerable.

Dave Evans, Deputy Chief Constable of Leicestershire Police, said the force was now "completely different" and that "significant resources" had been put into neighbourhood policing and tackling antisocial behaviour.

He said: "The conclusion from the misconduct meetings was that failings were of an organisational nature due to the systems and processes in place at the time not enabling officers to provide the most effective service. The force accepted in 2007, following its internal review, that it could have given a better service to Fiona Pilkington and her family."

He said he hoped the changes would give "some comfort" to the family, adding: "The tragic deaths of Fiona and her daughter acted as a turning point for the force in how it prioritised and dealt with antisocial behaviour, linking incidents and identifying vulnerability."

Police

The abuse ran from 1997, when Ms Pilkington called to report a chequebook stolen from her car, until 2007 when two girls were seen jumping on her hedge.