Lucy Letby inquiry LIVE: Latest updates from the Thirlwall Inquiry after seven babies were murdered by child killer nurse at Countess and Chester Hospital
Child killer nurse Lucy Letby‘s crimes are to be examined at a public inquiry today with hearings expected to last until the end of the year.
Letby was convicted of the murders of seven babies and the attempted murders of seven others, with two attempts on one child, when she worked on the neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital between June 2015 and June 2016.
Chaired by Lady Justice Thirlwall, the investigation at Liverpool Town Hall will focus on how Letby was able to attack babies on the ward, and how its bosses handled concerns about her.
Follow MailOnline’s live coverage below
Thirlwall Inquiry: What is it and what will it look at?
The Thirlwall Inquiry, a public inquiry chaired by High Court judge Lady Justice Thirlwall, was ordered on August 18 last year under the then Conservative government.
It was set up to examine the circumstances behind the murders and attempted murders of babies at Countess of Chester Hospital to help families get the answers they need.
The inquiry will look at how concerns about Letby raised by clinicians were dealt with and how they were handled by bosses.
Victims’ families will be invited to engage with the hearings to ensure their views are heard throughout the process.
Who is Lucy Letby?
Lucy Letby, a neonatal nurse at the Countess of Chester Hospital, became the UK’s most prolific child serial killer in modern times following her convictions over the murders of seven babies and the attempted murders of seven others last year.
Letby, from Hereford, was arrested in July 2018 after a painstaking investigation by Cheshire Police, known as Operation Hummingbird, into the deaths of babies at the hospital in 2015 and 2016.
The 34-year-old was the first person in her family to go to university when she enrolled on a three-year nursing degree at the University of Chester.
She qualified as a nurse in September 2011 and went on to start working full-time at the Countess of Chester hospital from January 2012. Three years later she began working with intensive care babies.
In September 2016, Letby was informed she was under investigation over the deaths of babies in a letter from the Royal College of Nursing.
Earlier that year, she had been removed from clinical duties and given a clerical role.
The public inquiry into how Lucy Letby was able to kill baies during a murder spree while working as a nurse will being today.
Chaired by Lady Justice Thirlwall, the investigation is to examine how Letby was able to attack babies on the Countess of Chester Hospital’s neo-natal unit in 2015 and 2016, and how its bosses handled concerns about her.
Letby, 34, from Hereford, is serving 15 whole-life orders after she was convicted at Manchester Crown Court of murdering seven infants and attempting to murder seven others, with two attempts on one of her victims.
Good morning
Hello and welcome to MailOnline’s live coverage of the Thirlwall Inquiry which is examining the crimes of child killer nurse Lucy Letby.
In August last year, Letby was convicted of the murders of seven babies and the attempted murders of seven others, with two attempts on one child, when she worked on the neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital between June 2015 and June 2016.
In the same month, the then Conservatrive government ordered a public inquiry into the circumstances behind the attacks to help families get the answers they need
Hearings are expected to take place at Liverpool Town Hall from now until the end of the year.
Follow our live coverage for latest developments,
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Lucy Letby inquiry LIVE: Latest updates from the Thirlwall Inquiry after seven babies were murdered by child killer nurse at Countess and Chester Hospital