Driver Charged With Causing Death of Two Girls in 2023 Wimbledon School Crash

Claire Freemantle, 48, has been charged with two counts of causing death by dangerous driving and seven counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving, the Crown Prosecution Service confirmed on 1 May 2026, nearly three years after a Land Rover crashed into The Study Prep school in Wimbledon and killed two eight-year-old girls. The charges follow a reopened investigation after the victims' families challenged an earlier CPS decision not to prosecute.

The Details

The crash occurred on 6 July 2023, during an end-of-term gathering at The Study Prep school in Wimbledon, according to the BBC. A Land Rover driven by Freemantle went through the school's railings, killing eight-year-old Selena Lau and eight-year-old Nuria Sajjad, and injuring seven others.

Freemantle has been charged — not convicted — with two counts of causing death by dangerous driving and seven counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving, the BBC reported. The charges were authorised by the Crown Prosecution Service, whose website listed a 1 May 2026 press release titled "CPS authorises charges in connection to Wimbledon collision."

The Guardian, Sky News, The Telegraph, and The Independent all separately reported on 1 May 2026 that a woman had been charged over the crash, according to aggregated UK news coverage.

The path to charges was not straightforward. According to the BBC's account of the initial CPS position, prosecutors had originally decided not to bring charges after concluding that Freemantle had suffered an undiagnosed epileptic seizure. That decision was finalised around mid-2024, following the initial police investigation.

The families of Selena Lau and Nuria Sajjad challenged that outcome. Later in 2024, the Metropolitan Police reopened the investigation after the families disputed the original decision and further lines of inquiry were examined, the BBC reported. In January 2025, Freemantle was re-arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving.

On 1 May 2026, prosecutors authorised the current charges. The CPS website search results confirm the charge announcement was made public that day.

Context

The case drew sustained public attention in the United Kingdom because the initial decision not to charge triggered a prolonged challenge from the victims' families and, eventually, a new police inquiry, according to the BBC. The families' persistence — disputing the original epileptic-seizure explanation — ultimately led to the Metropolitan Police reopening the case later in 2024.

The broad and near-simultaneous coverage across The Guardian, Sky News, The Telegraph, and The Independent on 1 May 2026 indicates that the charge announcement was quickly confirmed across the British press, according to aggregated UK news coverage.

The parents of Selena Lau and Nuria Sajjad responded to the charging decision in a statement reported by the BBC. "We were right to challenge that decision," the parents said. They added: "We are one step closer to understanding why Nuria and Selena were killed and why so many others were harmed."

What's Next

Freemantle now faces the formal criminal process following the CPS's charge authorisation. The charges of causing death by dangerous driving and causing serious injury by dangerous driving will proceed through the courts. No hearing dates were included in the sourced material available at the time of publication.

The case will be subject to the standard UK criminal court process. As of 1 May 2026, Freemantle has been charged but not convicted, and is entitled to the presumption of innocence.