Nottingham Families can pave the way for hundreds of others in a similar position
We’ve been hearing from a man who set up a charity to support other families who’ve been affected by serious mental health
Last updated 10th Feb 2025
A man who set up a charity for families who’ve lost loved ones due to the actions of someone mentally ill - hopes the Nottingham Families can be the “icebreaker” to change.
The families of Emma Webber, Dr Sinead O'Malley-Kumar and James Coates have been outspoken, campaigning for change to the system which cares for people who are mentally unwell and pose a risk to the public.
33 year old Valdo Calocane, who had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, was sentenced to an indefinite hospital order after killing the 19-year-old students Barnaby and Grace and caretaker Ian Coates, 65, before attempting to kill three other people, in a spate of attacks in Nottingham in June 2023.
The families used figures provided by the Hundred Families site during a press conference last week. Including the statistic: In Britain official figures show that on average there are more than 120 victims of killings by people with mental illness every year.
Julian Hendey set up the hundred families charity after losing his dad in 2007. He says “it was a completely unprovoked attack on a wholly innocent man”.
His murder was devastating for him and the rest of the family too.
“You would think murder victims’ families would get lots of help and support but I was surprised to find how difficult it was to get any information about what had happened – and what was going to happen next.”
As an experienced investigative journalist he undertook many years of intensive research to gather, source and verify information for the website he created.
“It turns out that hundreds of families have experienced what my family was going through. But they all suffer alone and in silence. Nobody appears to be helping them. Nobody is trying to do anything positive about the problem.
“I'm really pleased that the Nottingham families have got a voice. And I really hope that they can be an icebreaker. Their influence with lot of agencies and with the media and with the with the government, can pave the way for the hundreds of other families in a similar position, you know, and can make a difference long term for all of us.
“Serious mental illness can affect any family.”
His site can be viewed here. He says it aims to offer accurate information and practical advice for families bereaved by people with mental health problems along with evidence based resources for mental health professionals and others interested in serious violence by the mentally ill.