Jairus Earl

Dear Mrs GriƯin Thank you for your Regulation 28 Report to Prevent Future Deaths (PFD) dated 10th July 2025, and which was sent to the Secretary of State for the Home Department and Secretary of State for Health. You also sent this to the Chief Executive of the College of Policing and Chair of the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) as persons who may find it of interest. I write today on their behalf and that of Deputy Chief Constable from Warwickshire Police who leads the NPCC Firearms Licensing Portfolio. I am the NPCC Strategic Coordinator for Firearms Licensing and currently seconded into the College of Policing to deliver the new National Firearms Licensing Training Programme. This relates to the tragic death of Jairus Joshua Timothy Earl aged 15 years on 15th April 2024. I would like to begin by expressing my sincere condolences to Jarius’s family and friends. I am deeply sorry to learn of the circumstances you described, and I appreciate you taking the time to raise these important concerns to us. I have also engaged with both Dorset Police and the Metropolitan Police Service to learn more about this incident. Whilst my response will confirm our current position and proposals around the issues that you have raised, I must equally highlight the absolute importance and personal responsibility on licence holders for the security of their firearms especially when there are significant known concerns regarding the mental health and vulnerability of those close to them. There is a specific condition on the licence to ensure that shot guns, must at all times be stored securely so as to prevent, as far as is reasonably practicable, access to the guns by an unauthorised person. You have correctly highlighted that there is currently no statutory responsibility on licence holders to inform policing if they store firearms temporarily at second homes. I believe it.

Page | 2 would become too complicated for example if new rules were created for licence holders without second homes to inform policing every time their firearms are temporarily away from home when attending shooting locations. We would not have the capacity to check and authorise such short-term arrangements. Some forces have sought to implement local measures to deal with secondary storage locations. For this to be consistently applied nationally, there must be clear guidance in place and onus on licence holders to declare their second homes if they propose on storing firearms there. My intentions therefore are to develop this issue with the Home OƯice Firearms and Weapons Policy Unit to establish if the Firearms Licensing Statutory Guidance for Chief OƯicers and application forms can be further amended to cover these circumstances. In addition to the above there is a significant programme of works underway chaired by the NPCC Firearms Licensing Lead and project managed by Police Digital Services (PDS) to develop a brand-new National Firearms Licensing Management System (NFLMS). Of the various aspirations with this new system, it will deliver the much-needed consistency required as all firearms licensing teams, licence holders and applicants will use it. It will align with many systems already used by policing and in relation to this tragic incident there would be opportunities for second homes to subsequently alert local force systems that firearms may be present on those premises. Finally, on this point our intentions are to review the Firearms Security Handbook (last revised
2020) to ensure that it aligns with the new statutory guidance. We can use this opportunity to further reference second homes within this public document. Your report references the diƯerence between the Section 1 Firearm and Section 2 Shotgun legislation, highlighting that both are lethal barrelled weapons. The NPCC Firearms Licensing Portfolio acknowledge this and welcome the Government intentions to hold a public consultation later this year to consider the closer alignment of firearm and shotgun legislation. We will respond to this when it occurs and actively engage with all police licensing teams to ensure all opinions are collated and fed back through the Home OƯice. The PFD lastly highlights your concerns over the lack of access to medical information of others residing at the address of a licence applicant, especially in relation to mental health. This is a shared concern within police firearms licensing as we should take an active interest in those around the applicant or current licence holder as their behaviour or vulnerability could impact on the statutory test for others to possess firearms i.e not being a danger to public safety or to the peace. Whilst we are unable to directly access the medical records of those around the applicant, because of this case and similar tragedies we have successfully worked with the Home OƯice to further strengthen the statutory guidance on this specific point, which now reads:

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2.16 Home Visits and Inspections  The home visit must include an interview to discuss all issues relevant to suitability as set out in this guidance and must include inspection of security arrangements. The police should always interview the applicant’s partner and other members of the household during the home visit unless there is a strong reason for not doing so. Where there are considered to be such strong reasons, the position should be agreed with the relevant manager and properly recorded.  Such interviews are crucial in providing the police with a more comprehensive picture of both the applicant & other householder’s domestic and mental wellbeing circumstance, to assist with their suitability assessment.  The interview with the applicant’s partner and other members of the household must be undertaken separately from the interview with the applicant, and without the applicant being present, and any disclosure which leads to a decision to refuse (or revoke) a certificate should be carefully communicated so as to minimise to the greatest extent possible the risk to the partner or other household member. If there is the possibility or evidence of domestic abuse (see paragraphs 2.57 to 2.64 below) or other mental wellbeing concerns then wider enquiries and investigations must take place. In addition to the Home OƯice Statutory Guidance, as the professional body for policing in England and Wales, the College of Policing is equally committed to setting high standards across the service. The aim is to support oƯicers and staƯ in delivering eƯective, ethical, and evidence-based policing, which meets both current and future challenges. One of the keyways we do this is through the development of Authorised Professional Practice (APP)—the oƯicial source of professional guidance for policing in England and Wales. The Firearms Licensing APP was subject of a significant review in 2023 and will encourage to use three overlapping factors that inform professional judgement around risk. These are:  communication  curiosity  clues These three factors are not hierarchical, and they are potentially self-reinforcing. For example, good communication can reveal more clues, which may identify more avenues for investigation (curiosity). This can lead to more focused communication. Good communication allows staff to address and probe sensitive issues that are relevant to the application such as people’s past, health, and vulnerability. Staff should exercise professional curiosity to actively identify and investigate suitability such as asking questions and keeping an open mind. Staff should be alert to and understand the clues that may impact on suitability such as medical conditions or signs of vulnerability

Page | 4 The relationship with Police Firearms Licensing Teams and applicants or current licence holders is built on trust. The expectation being that applicants or licence holders declare relevant medical conditions for themselves or in relation to a family member or associate who lives at the address or has unsupervised access to the address. These are just a few of the considerations that we discuss with learners who attend the mandatory firearms licensing training programme. As part of this training, in June 2025 we commenced delivery of an additional two-day course for Firearms Licensing Enquiry OƯicers where we focus on important subject areas relating to domestic abuse, family turmoil together with mental health and wellbeing. I trust this oƯers a helpful response to the concerns that you have raised and would thank you once again for bringing this matter to our attention. I would please ask that you pass on my deepest sympathies to Jairus’s family and loved ones.

Dear Mrs Griffin,

INQUEST FOLLOWING THE DEATH OF JAIRUS JOSHUA TIMOTHY EARL

REPORT TO PREVENT FUTURE DEATHS UNDER REGULATIONS 28 AND 29 OF THE CORONERS (INVESTIGATIONS) REGULATIONS 2013

I am writing to thank you for your Regulation 28 report of 28 July 2025 following the inquest into the death of Jairus Joshua Timothy Earl on 14 April 2024, which involved the use a licensed shotgun. You reference in your report the differences in the controls that apply to the licensing of shotguns and other firearms, and you have highlighted two specific concerns that you consider present a risk of future deaths unless action is taken. We are grateful for your report as we are always looking to ensure we have effective controls to mitigate potential firearms risks.

The first of these concerns was about the lack of a system for sharing and flagging information between police forces regarding shotgun licence holders and the location of shotguns. This applies in particular to situations where shotguns are located from time to time in a certificate holder’s second home, which could be without the knowledge of the relevant police force, if that force is different to the force that issued the certificate holder’s firearm at their primary address. All police forces have been alerted to this as an issue. It is possible for the police to check whether an individual is a firearm or shotgun certificate holder, for example, when responding to an incident by checking the firearms licensing data system, known as the National Firearms Licensing Management System (NFLMS). Also it is a requirement that all firearm and shotgun holders must keep their firearms stored and locked securely away at all times when not in use to ensure that no one else can access them.

There is, however, presently no requirement on those applying for a firearm or shotgun certificate to provide details of a second home when submitting their application, and the details of the second home will not, therefore, be routinely recorded on the NFLMS. In the

light of your Regulation 28 Report, we will be amending the firearm and shotgun application form as soon as is practicable to request details of any second (or additional) residences where guns may be held, so that police are aware of where firearms are being stored, including where guns are being stored in different police force areas. This change to the application form will be implemented via Statutory Instrument and will also require a change to the NFLMS to ensure such details are recorded. We are therefore adding this change to planned adjustments to the system, which we expect to be completed in early
2026. In the meantime, this issue will be addressed by the police when undertaking suitability interviews with applicants or certificate holders.

Your second concern was about police access to medical information about other persons living at the same property as the applicant, or at their second homes, when considering firearm and shotgun licence applications. You will therefore wish to note that the most recent revision of the Statutory Guidance for Chief Officers of Police on firearms licensing, which was published on 5 August, now includes a specific requirement that the police should consider the mental wellbeing of both the applicant and other household members during home visits associated with an application for a firearm or shotgun licence. The Statutory Guidance says that such interviews are crucial in providing the police with a more comprehensive picture of both the applicant and other household members’ circumstances, including in relation to domestic circumstances or possible mental wellbeing issues, in order to assist in undertaking a comprehensive assessment of the safety of the applicant and others, as well as the suitability of the applicant.

I am aware that you have also sent your Regulation 28 Report to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. That Department will be able to address and respond to the issue of the police having access to information about the health of persons other than those who are seeking to obtain a firearm or shotgun certificate. However, as this is a clear risk which has been identified, we will be engaging with the DHSC directly on this point and how to mitigate that risk despite the data protection and consent issue concerns involved.

Public safety, including the safety of shotgun and firearms certificate holders, their families and the wider community, is at the heart of firearms licensing controls. It is right that we learn from the circumstances of all shooting incidents to see whether there are changes that should be made to the controls on firearms to help to prevent future incidents and tragedies. In relation to the differences in the controls on shotguns and other firearms which you referenced in your Regulation 28 Report, you will be aware that this was raised by the Senior Coroner for Plymouth, Torbay and South Devon in his Prevention of Future Deaths Report following the Inquests into the deaths of those who were shot and killed in Plymouth, on 12 August 2021. The previous Government held a public consultation in 2023 on recommendations that had been made by the Coroner, although not those recommendations concerning shotguns, and a formal response to that consultation was published on 13 February this year, in which we therefore committed to having a consultation later this year on the controls on shotguns. This will be consulting on greater alignment between these controls and the controls on other firearms.

Thank you again for your report. We continue to keep the controls on firearms under close review to ensure that the strongest possible safeguards are in place.