A safeguarding review found that ten-month-old Finley Borden “died as a result of abuse while he was supposed to be one of the most protected children in the local authority area”.
A report by the Derby and Derbyshire Safeguarding Children Partnership also found the safeguarding of children before their deaths was “inadequate”.
The report said the impact of the pandemic and lockdown had “significantly disrupted” the “protection systems and services designed to detect, prevent and respond to abuse” at the time.
Finlay’s parents, Shannon Marsden, 22, and Stephen Boden, 30, were found guilty of murdering Finlay in Derbyshire last April.
The couple murdered the 10-month-old on Christmas Day 2020, just weeks after he was returned to their care.
They burned and beat the baby, leaving him with 130 different wounds, including multiple fractures.
His injuries included a broken thigh, broken pelvis, burn marks and 71 bruises. Finley also suffered from sepsis and endocarditis – an infection of the lining of the heart.
Stephen Boden and Shannon Marsden. Image: PA
Social workers had earlier removed Finlay from his parents because local authority Derbyshire County Council believed Finlay might have suffered “serious harm” at home.
He was murdered just weeks after returning to full-time care at Marsden and Borden, according to a Family Court order in October 2020.
A social worker warned a court hearing that Finlay would be “at risk of neglect, physical and emotional harm” if Marsden and Borden continued to take illegal drugs or failed to continue making positive changes.
A representative from Derbyshire County Council told the hearing that “all parties” agreed that Finlay should be “transitioned” back into the care of his parents, but asked that the process take place within four months and that additional drug tests be required.
However, a guardian employed by the Children and Family Court Advice and Support Service (Cafcass), who represented Finlay at the nearly two-hour hearing, argued the transition should be quicker because the couple had “clearly made and sustained positive changes”.
The final decision was made by two magistrates, assisted by a legal adviser, who supported the guardian’s view that an eight-week transition period was a “reasonable and proportionate” length of time.
When the couple were sentenced at Derby Crown Court in May last year, a judge described the couple as “persuasive and skilled liars” who had inflicted “unimaginable cruelty” on their son.
The judge also said the parents lied about Finlay having coronavirus to prevent anyone from visiting the baby.
Both men were sentenced to life imprisonment, with Shannon Marsden receiving a minimum of 27 years and Stephen Boden a minimum of 29 years.
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