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There are two key areas of activity at the moment:

1) Linkage College Investigation

Last week, I shared that the Chief Executive of Linkage College had informed me that an investigation had been initiated into the case of Lizzie Gladwell. I’m pleased to report that I have had what felt like a productive conversation with the investigator leading the case.

Balancing transparency with confidentiality is crucial to ensure the integrity of this process, but it remains essential to reaffirm the authenticity and validity of The Lizzie Gladwell Podcast. The inescapable truth is that a vulnerable young person was taken from outside her home the day after her eighteenth birthday, then systematically isolated from her loved ones through coercive means.

The investigation is set to conclude by the end of this month.

Linkage College’s safeguarding policy states: “Linkage has a zero tolerance of harm, and believes that it is unacceptable for adults, young people and children to experience abuse of any kind.”

That statement is unequivocal. I sincerely hope they uphold it.

2) Engagement with MP Melanie Onn

As with the investigation, discretion is necessary in what I share publicly. However, I can say that my engagement with Melanie Onn’s caseworker has been encouraging – markedly more professional and proactive than my experiences with Focus Adult Social Care or Humberside Police.

I have already delivered one batch of letters to the constituency office. More are needed. I know many people are taking the time to write, sharing your experiences of our beautiful, fun-loving, caring, trusting and highly vulnerable daughter, Lizzie.

These letters are not meant to be controversial or accusatory. They simply tell the truth – about Lizzie’s faith, her love, the strength of her relationships, and the very real vulnerabilities stemming from her diagnosis. These were not just words on a medical report; they were evident to anyone who truly knew her.

If you wish to contribute, please ensure I receive your letters by the last week of March. I will personally deliver them to Melanie Onn’s office.

I have been deeply moved and humbled by the letters I’ve seen so far (shared with the writers’ permission). Many are too personal for publication, but they all express love for Lizzie and deep bewilderment at her disappearance.

One particularly insightful letter comes from the Director of a highly respected FASD charity. Her words encapsulate the situation with stark clarity:

“The situation in the Gladwell family is an unusual one in that Lizzie’s partner and his whole family suddenly took a vulnerable young adult (who would socially and emotionally present like a primary school child developmentally), and moved her into their home, without any prior arrangements, without any discussion with her parents, with no knowledge of her full medical history, with none of her own property, in an unplanned and sinister snatch-and-grab way. They then severed her relationships with her parents and all her extended family, that had previously been positive, and she has never been returned home. Nothing of that situation reads as though this was done in the best interests of Lizzie.”

This is plainly wrong. As I have stated in the podcast, I maintain that the police and Adult Social Care have acted in support of the coercive control and exploitation of a vulnerable young person. I now possess clear evidence of police dishonesty regarding this case, which suggests an attempt at a cover-up.

However, I refuse to be silenced. I will not give up.

I am Lizzie’s dad.

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Thank you for reading. If you have any insights, comments or advice, please feel free to add them below.