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April 2026: Thirlwall Inquiry final report due after Easter · CCRC still reviewing 31+ independent expert reports · Shoo Lee Panel (Feb 2025): no medical evidence of deliberate harm.

Lucy Letby Facts
Inquiry witness evidence — summary + excerpts
·Karen Rees; Thirlwall Inquiry

Karen Rees — witness evidence summary (Thirlwall Inquiry)

Karen Rees, Head of Nursing for Urgent Care, was the on-call duty manager on the night of 23 June 2016 when consultants demanded Letby be removed from the neonatal unit mid-shift. Her Thirlwall Inquiry evidence addresses that night, her clinical judgement, and the escalation chain that night.

Last updated
15 min read

Licence: Open Government Licence v3.0

Original source: thirlwall.inquiry.gov.uk

Mirrored on this site:

Crown Copyright. Mirrored under the Open Government Licence v3.0 with attribution.

Context

Karen Rees was Head of Nursing for Urgent Care and the on-call duty manager on the night of 23 June 2016, when consultants demanded that Letby be removed from the neonatal unit mid-shift. Her Thirlwall Inquiry evidence addresses that specific night and the escalation chain.

Key passages

Karen Rees

On that night, I did not have the clinical concern that the consultants had. Had I had that concern, I would have acted differently.
Thirlwall Inquiry witness evidence, Autumn 2024

Counsel to the Inquiry

The consultants were telling you, in terms, that they believed a nurse on their unit was harming babies. You decided not to remove her mid-shift. Is that correct?
Thirlwall Inquiry

Karen Rees

That is correct. I took the view at the time that the clinical evidence did not justify the step they were asking for. I accept that was wrong.
Thirlwall Inquiry

What to read alongside this

See our profile of Karen Rees. The 30 June 2016 entry on the timeline covers the events that followed that shift.

Related on this site

Officials

Attribution and licence

Contains public-sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Original source: thirlwall.inquiry.gov.uk . Mirrored on this site on 2026-04-21.