Isabella Whieldon: Norfolk Police launches internal investigation after reports find toddler murdered in Ipswich was failed by agencies across four counties

Norfolk Police has launched an internal investigation after a damning review found a toddler who was beaten to death by her mother’s new partner was failed by agencies across four counties.

Two-year-old Isabella Jonas-Wheildon was discovered in a locked bathroom at a housing complex in Ipswich in June 2023, after she was subjected to a ‘cruel campaign of violence and abuse’ that ultimately led to her death.

Earlier that month, mother Chelsea Gleason-Michell, 24, and partner Scott Jeff, 24, who have been jailed for a total of 36 years for the crime, travelled to Great Yarmouth from their home town of Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, for a holiday.

But once there, the pair were later found by officers sleeping rough in a tent on Caister beach 15 days before Isabella’s lifeless body was found in Sidegate Lane, Ipswich.

The murder sparked a safeguarding practice review, which found opportunities to protect the child had been missed by the force and other agencies.

This has triggered an investigation by Norfolk Police’s professional standards department, which will look into interactions it had with the child and members of her family.

The report details how the couple had taken the little girl and travelled to the Norfolk coast on June 1 by train, first staying at hotels.

Gleason-Michell’s family members travelled to the coastal town to search for her and asked for help at Great Yarmouth Police Station.

They say that help was ‘not forthcoming’ from officers so they continued to search themselves to no avail.

According to the report, the family had become concerned due to a lack of contact from the 24-year-old and had heard anecdotal information about her new boyfriend, Scott Jeff, which “worried them greatly”.

An ex-girlfriend of Jeff’s had previously told police at another force he had subjected her to domestic abuse by controlling her movements and finances and had assaulted, threatened and strangled her.

But this information was not shared across the agencies.

Later, Norfolk police officers found Jeff, Gleason-Mitchell and Isabella sleeping rough on Caister Beach after calls from concerned members of the public on a ‘very hot day’ with temperatures over 30 degrees.

However, officers said they did not take the child into police protection and instead, the family were found temporary accommodation in the town.

The review says that following this interaction, there should have been ‘professional curiosity about the fact that the family were found camping on the beach in Great Yarmouth and had moved around’.

“This should have alerted the various agencies as to concerns over the parenting of Isabella,” it continued.

Agencies in Bedfordshire and Norfolk, including Great Yarmouth Housing, were interacting with each other at this time and concerns were raised about the toddler.

However, Jeff’s ‘extreme coercive controlling behaviour’ was not identified, Dr Russel Wate, the author of the report, wrote.

He said discussions focused instead on who should take responsibility ‘from the respective three local authorities, children’s services, and relevant housing services’.

By June 19, Jeff and Gleason-Mitchell had travelled to Ipswich where they were found temporary accommodation for Isabella and her mother.

Seven days later, the toddler was found dead after her lifeless body had been wheeled around in a buggy on shopping trips for several days.

In December last year, Jeff was sentenced to a minimum of 26 years in prison at Ipswich Crown Court for what Judge Mr Justice Neil Garnham called a ‘cruel campaign of violence and abuse’ which ended in Isabella’s death on June 26.

Gleason-Mitchell was also jailed for 10 years for causing or allowing her daughter’s death.

A full rundown of the trial can be found here.

A spokeswoman for Norfolk Constabulary said it would be ‘inappropriate to comment at this time due to the internal investigation, triggered after the criminal trial in December last year’.

She added: “We recognise the concerns highlighted by Isabella’s family about their experience and the findings in the report about our contact with the family on the beach.

“Children have the right to be safe and every time a child is seen by police, it does provide us with an opportunity to check on their safety and security.

“Our thoughts remain with Isabella’s family.”