How mother’s 30-year fight finally brought justice for her little girl murdered by babysitter’s boyfriend

Sharon Henderson never stopped fighting for the truth to be uncovered – but after the killer’s conviction, she can finally start to grieve. Jane Dalton reports

Nikki Allan was battered and stabbed before her body was dumped in a derelict Sunderland warehouse (PA Media)

Tormented by not knowing who brutally murdered her seven-year-old daughter and unable to grieve properly, Sharon Henderson embarked on a 31-year fight for the truth.

Devoting her life to battling for justice for her little girl, Nikki Allan, she never gave up hope that one day the man who battered and stabbed her child before callously dumping her body would be caught and jailed.

The single mother lived in the Garth flats over Sunderland’s docks, bringing up her three other daughters, helped by her parents nearby while she campaigned assiduously for detectives to reinvestigate the crime.