Her role within the University of Roehampton’s criminology department has seen her recently research and publish England and Wales’ first national analysis of parricide.

Parricide is when a parent (including adoptive or step-parent) is killed by their child, either through a single incident or a culmination of abuse/neglect.

Using the Home Office Homicide Index, Dr Holt was able to identify 693 incidents between 1977 and 2012 – equating to around 19 each year. In 23 of those incidents, both parents were killed while the rest claimed the life of one parent.

That’s at least one parent killed every 19 days in England and Wales.

What do we know about the suspects? Around 90% were male | They ranged in age from 11 to 69 | Around 9% were juveniles (under 18).

What do we know about the victims? 51% of those killed were fathers and 49% were mothers | They ranged in age from 25 to 101 | 84% were white, 8% black and 7% Asian.

The most common methods were using a blunt or sharp instrument (60%), strangulation (16%), kicking or hitting (10%), and shooting (7%).

And the most common outcome for the suspect was being found guilty of manslaughter (54%), with 26% being found guilty of murder, 16% being found guilty or other/unknown charges, and 4% being found not guilty by reason of insanity.

Our Founding Director Michelle John said: “Child to Parent Abuse is an uncomfortable topic for many of us to talk about, even more so when we are reflecting on the killing of a parent. It’s so far removed from the reality of most people’s lives, but sadly it is all too real for the loved ones of more than 700 people killed by their children in the 35 years this study covers, and those who have lost their lives since.

“While an isolated incident resulting in the death of a parent might be harder to stop, where the deaths are the result of ongoing abuse or neglect, that represents a tragically missed opportunity by authorities to intervene.

“This research represents a hugely valuable resource for professionals to be able to use as they increase their knowledge and refine their policies and practices around situations where a parent is in danger.”

Click here to read the full report.