Full inquest into teenager's murder to be held

A full inquest will be held into the death of murdered Sheffield schoolboy Harvey Willgoose after a coroner reversed an earlier decision not to resume her investigation.

Harvey, 15, was stabbed to death by Mohammed Umar Khan, 15, in front of children and teachers at All Saints Catholic High School in February 2025. Khan was found guilty of murder after a trial last year and detained for a minimum of 16 years.

An inquest was opened and adjourned in February last year pending the conclusion of the criminal case, but after Khan's conviction senior coroner Tanyka Rawden initially decided not to resume proceedings.

Harvey's mother, Caroline, said it was a "huge relief" an inquest would now be held.

A date for the full inquest into Harvey's murder had not yet been fixed, the coroner's office confirmed.

Law firm Irwin Mitchell, representing Harvey's family, said it had made legal submissions that an inquest was required after a review, commissioned by the trust which runs the school, found Khan had brought knives into school on a number of occasions and identified "several missed opportunities" to address his behaviour.

The review also found Khan had 130 behavioural incidents logged on his school record, including concerns relating to gangs, weapons and anger.

The independent review, commissioned by St Clare Catholic Multi‑Academy Trust and published in January, found school leaders "could, and at times should, have taken different action", adding that the trust would "continue to take action" in line with recommendations made in the report, with several "robust measures" implemented since Harvey's death.

Caroline Willgoose said she and husband Mark welcomed the decision to hold a full inquest.

"It's devastating to know there were warning signs and chances to step in before Harvey was killed," she said.

"As his mum, I can't help thinking about what might have happened if someone had acted.

"We wanted an inquest because we owe it to Harvey to keep asking those questions and find out whether more should have been done to keep him safe.

"Hearing there will now be an inquest is a huge relief."

She added that although a full inquest would not "bring Harvey back or take away the pain", it meant the questions the family had lived with since his death could finally be asked.

"We have fought for this for Harvey," she said.

"He deserved to be safe at school, and we hope getting those answers will help stop another child being taken from their family."

Yogi Amin, from Irwin Mitchell, said there was a "strong public interest" in examining whether Harvey's death was preventable and whether systemic failings in the education system contributed to it.

"While the coroner will determine the inquest's scope, Mark and Caroline hope they will examine safeguarding policies, practices and resources applied in schools and the role of public bodies," he said.

"This includes looking at information-sharing and risk-escalation and consider if measures are necessary to prevent similar deaths.

Amin said that in the meantime, school leaders nationally should review their policies and practices so they were fit for purpose and other pupils were not put at risk.

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