Mother who killed two of her children was seen as ‘loving, caring and competent’

Sarah Barrass. Picture: South Yorkshire Police/PA

A woman who murdered her two eldest children and plotted to kill the other four was seen by professionals involved with the family as “a loving, caring and competent mother”, a serious case review (SCR) has found.

Incestuous couple Sarah Barrass, 35, and her half-brother Brandon Machin, 39, were jailed for life last year with a minimum term of 35 years for the murder of 13-year-old Tristan Barrass and his 14-year-old brother Blake, at their home in the Shiregreen area of Sheffield.