Case No. NE20C00617

5.The mother and father began their relationship when they were both in their mid-teens. S was born in February 2011 and E in December 2012. The parents share parental responsibility for both children. The family lived together in Sunderland in single level, ground floor, two bedroom accommodation. The father did occasional work. The mother did not work. The family had frequent contact with the maternal and paternal siblings and grandmothers.6.Expert cognitive assessment of the mother in June 2019 revealed that her overall intellectual functioning placed her in the borderline learning disability range, considered her to have been adversely affected by her limited education and attendance at school and ongoing anxiety in certain situations where she feels judged and anxious not to make mistakes. 7.The children have been subject to Child Protection Plans for neglect since February 2017. In July 2017 they were subject to the Public Law Outline for two months, and again for a period in July 2018. On 4 September 2019 public law proceedings were concluded with a Supervision Order for six months. The agreed threshold included that:i)The state of the home had, at times, been very poor over a number of years, being dirty, cluttered, untidy, cold, unsanitary and unsafe. ii)The children had poor school attendance and punctuality.iii)The children’s presentation was poor, often dirty and unkempt. S was significantly overweight and wore jogging bottoms to school because the mother said that his trousers rubbed him.iv)The parents’ relationship was volatile with a number of police call-outs to the home from July 2016 to December 2018, the children being present on those occasions.v)The children’s diet was poor, with limited food in the house on occasions. vi) The parents failed to meet the children’s health needs, delaying seeking assistance when clearly required. S suffered from vitamin D deficiency which worsened even after medication had been prescribed.vii)The parents lacked insight into the concerns of the Local Authority and showed limited engagement with professionals. They were unable to make and sustain necessary changes to provide appropriate care to the children.8.On the night of 19 to 20 September 2019, only a fortnight or so after the Supervision Order had been made, the mother made a 999 call for an ambulance to attend the family home. The circumstances of the evening are in dispute and were the subject of much scrutiny at the hearing. The following facts and matters can be stated with confidence:i)The mother and father argued during the day and were still antagonistic to each other during the evening of 19 September 2019.ii)At some point in the evening the father made the mother a pot noodle but she did not want it and he kicked it over. The spilled contents are visible on photographs taken by the police. iii)E went to bed at between 8pm and 9pm.iv)The mother went to a next door neighbour, taking E with her, and called for an ambulance at 23.56 pm on 19 September 2019. She reported, “I feel like I’m going to pass out and I’m shaking…” She reported that she had been bleeding from her vagina. She denied having been injured. It was noted that a child (E) could be heard sounding very distressed in the background. v)At six minutes past midnight on 20 September 2019 the mother called 999 again, asking for them to “come quick”. She said, “me partner’s drugs. I didn’t realise, he didn’t tell me about it…. He gave me loads of drugs in me cup.” When asked whether she had taken the drugs, the mother replied “No, I didn’t know about them,” but repeats that the father had put drugs “in me drink”. The neighbour came on the call and said that the mother was confused and “cannot understand properly nor nowt.”vi)At 31 minutes past midnight on 20 September 2019 a third 999 call was made by the mother but the neighbour takes over the call and reports that “she’s been spiked by her partner and she’s hallucinating and everything … her situation is just getting worse”.vii)The ambulance arrived at the family home at 38 minutes past midnight on 20 September 2019. It was recorded that the mother “states she has been punched and kicked several times by her partner this morning causing contusions to face, arms and legs. Contusions old and new present … patient alleges that tonight her partner has put unknown substance in her drink and after she had finished her drink partner told her what he had done. On crew arrival patient agitated saying that she feels unwell and complaining of stomach pains. States she has a heavy pv bleed caused after intercourse with her partner yesterday.” The mother had a rapid pulse rate. Two bruises to her face, and several bruises to her body were recorded. viii)The body worn cameral footage shows the mother in the ambulance with E who is clearly distressed at the prospect of being taken to her maternal grandmothers’ and being separated from her mother whilst she was being treated. The police entered the family home. S was in his unlit bedroom in his underpants. The police spoke to the father who was anxious about arrangements for the children to be cared for and to attend school. At one point he is heard to say that “I’ve had social on my back.” He is handcuffed. S is extremely distressed at the prospect of his father being taken away by the police. He pleads with them, “Let him go”, and wails, “Why?” and “I want to stay with you.”. At one point he says, “It’s not my dad. Why does Dad get arrested?” At another, he says “One more chance. I mean it. This won’t happen again.”ix)The hospital record notes on arrival the mother was “very agitated and hyperactive” but when seen at 4.57 am she was more settled. It was recorded that, “Patient was suspecting partner of STI and went for a health check. Apparently partner was not happy with this and patient was assaulted by him. Patient suspects that some substance was put in her drink. She was able to get out fast to the neighbour for help.” No abnormalities were found on examination or on biochemical or haematological tests save that her white cell count was high. The mother was released from hospital to travel to her mother’s house to see the children but it was noted that the police were wanting her to return for “statement and for toxicology”.9.The children were taken by social workers from the paternal grandmother’s home to their own home in order to get ready for school on the morning of 20 September 2019. The mother had caught up with the children and the social worker after leaving hospital. When one of the social workers, Ms I, was asking questions of the children on their way to school, and E was responding, S told her to be quiet.10.At 10.15 am on 20 September Ms I and her colleague Ms D, visited the mother at home. They noted that she was “agitated and overwhelmed… unable to sit still, she constantly played with her hair and fidgeted in the chair…. The way [in which] the mother spoke was not very coherent and she seemed to jump between incidents and events and concerns which she has for the children and the father.” The mother reported that E had said to her, “When the father tells them they are naughty that’s when it happens.” She felt that the father was turning the children, particularly S, against her. Then the mother reported that she thought that S was being groomed by the father. She became upset and said that it is “sick” and “disgusting” before stating that “he is sexually abusing them”. She said that she had been asking questions of E and S recently since she had had concerns. S was saying nothing but E talked about her “throat hurting and belly hurting and not liking to be alone.” The mother was very upset when making these assertions.11.A little later that morning, at school, Ms I spoke to E who told her that “sometimes they keep on fighting, me and S fall asleep and I keep on trying to fall asleep but they keep on shouting.” She said that “She did not like being in the house with my dad. I don’t like leaving Mam by herself and I keep on worrying about her because she’s been in hospital.” E confirmed that her throat keeps “getting hurty” and she keeps on feeling sick “on Monday and Tuesday.” She said that she did not have any “bad secrets”. 12.The father was interviewed under caution by the police at 1.02 pm on 20 September 2019. He said that whilst usually they got on well, the mother had been acting strangely in the past two weeks or so. He said that she had been saying horrible things about him but he refused to disclose what they were. He said that he has been able to control the situation but things “got out of control” the night before. He denied putting drugs in the mother’s food or drink – “I never touch drugs.” He denied having hit the mother, saying that when agitated she would hit herself repeatedly with her e-cigarette.13.The mother went to live in a refuge with the children. Since the night of the 19 to 20 September 2019 the mother and father have lived apart and have not spoken, save for a few words. 14.The mother’s vital signs were normal on arrival at hospital. Blood tests did not show signs of her being drugged. She left after a short time and with no treatment save for some paracetamol. The police did not manage to speak to the mother or to secure her assistance with toxicology tests. At a further social work visit to the school on 3 October 2019 both children raised concerns about their father’s wellbeing. On 4 October the school safeguarding lead noted that S was happier having spoken to his father and E felt sad as she missed her father.15.On 14 October 2019 Ms HS, social worker, attended the refuge where the mother and children were residing. At 3.27 pm it was recorded by a staff member at the refuge that the mother had come to her to show her a picture that E had drawn the previous night. The mother said that she had been in the communal area with the other women when E gave her the picture, pointed to it and said, “that’s my head and that’s what dad puts in my mouth.” On Ms HS’s arrival two hours later, the mother indicated that E had a picture that she wanted to show her, located on the top of a wardrobe. The mother left the room. Ms HS noted that the children looked apprehensive. E took down a torn piece of tea-stained paper on which was drawn what appears to be an outline of a fish with a circle connected to its head. E said that the picture was of her and the circle was her father putting swear words into her mouth. It is important to note that she did not say that the circle was her mouth, but that it represented what was put in her mouth when she was naughty. Ms HS pressed E to tell her what the swear words were and eventually E wrote down on the back of the paper, “Pis off”. Staff at the refuge told Ms HS that earlier the children at the refuge had been talking about a whale or dolphin that had been stranded on a beach and that the staff felt the picture may have been of. It certainly appears to have a tail like a dolphin or whale. Ms HS told the court that she had passed on E’s explanation to the mother who had “accepted that her explanation seemed plausible” and did not push the possibility of sexual abuse any further. The mother agreed that the children should have supervised contact with their father.16.On 17 October 2019 the children saw their father for the first time since the 20 September 2019. Ms HS, social worker, noted that they interacted well with their father but E was very direct, telling him that “Mam said she hates you.” At times E was very affectionate with her father, giving him kisses and cuddles. S too was noted to be very happy and comfortable around his father.17.During the morning of 18 October 2019, the mother sent an audio recording to the police. The recording was made at the refuge. The mother can be heard talking to E who says that her father “hates us” and “puts swear words in my mouth.” The mother asks what else and when E replies encourages her to “say it louder”. E can be heard saying “tail”. The mother asks why E has not told her this before and E says that she had done. Again the mother asks her to talk louder. The police shared their concerns with Ms HS that the mother could be heard coaxing E to say what the father had done with her. A joint visit of the police and a social worker was made during the afternoon on the same day, during which E made no disclosure and said that her father had put nothing in her mouth other than swear words. She said that if she was naughty her mother would shout and her father would send her to bed. When asked if her Daddy did or said anything she did not like she answered that “he puts swear words in my mouth.” When asked what he said she replied that she could not remember. She was asked if he put anything else in her mouth and she said “no”. When asked if anyone had done anything she did not like, she replied, “no”. The police decided to take no further action.18.On 1 November 2019 the mother contacted Ms HS to say that S had said something similar to E in relation to the father having sexually abused her. Ms HS cautioned the mother that E had not in fact alleged sexual abuse to the police or to her as a social worker but agreed to speak directly to the children. She visited the children on 4 November 2019. S would not speak initially but when told that his mother has said that what had happened to him was similar to what E had said he nodded his head. Ms HS told the court that this was merely an acknowledgement of what the mother had said. When asked about whether it was true he neither confirmed nor denied the allegation. Ms HS spoke to E who was unable to share any further information. The mother told Ms HS that S had spoken to the mother about suffering the same abuse as E because he “doesn’t understand why people don’t believe her.” Records from the refuge were obtained during the hearing. They include a record for 31 October 2019 when the mother reported to staff that S had said, “Mummy, why does nobody believe us about dad”, to which the mother had replied, “because E hasn’t told people.” She then said that S had commented, “well I know E is right because daddy has been doing the same thing to me. I am going to start talking.” The refuge staff then spoke to E who said she was worried that her mother would go to her father and they would start fighting again.19.Several months then passed before the allegations of sexual abuse against the father emerged again. On 30 July 2020 E and the mother were taking part in a group Domestic Abuse Resistance Team (DART) session under the guidance of Ms SP, a Child and Young Family Service Worker. There were four mothers with children, each pair sitting around a table going through “OK/not OK” cards. The idea was to decide whether the statement or idea depicted on the card was OK or not OK. After a while Ms SP noticed that E was upset and asked her and the mother to speak to her in private away from the other participants. The mother informed her that E had become upset dealing with a card that said, “adults to touch kids where they don’t like”. The mother was also upset. Ms SP asked E if anyone had done this. E indicated that it was someone in the family, and then that it was her father. When asked where he had touched her that she did not like, E shook her head and backed up on the chair putting her hands between her legs. Ms SP clarified that this was not an indication that the father had touched E between her legs, but rather a message that she did not want to engage any further with the discussion. Ms SP told E that she had been brave and asked if she had told anyone else. E replied, “just Mam.” E then told her that it had happened “just once when I was asleep” at a time when the family all lived together. The police were informed and attended. A record of the visit notes that upon speaking to the police E “clammed up saying she had “it “ on her tablet – this was in fact a recording (not dated) between her mother and E whereby the mother was asking E questions about what her father [had done].” E told the police that she did not know what a “tail” was.20.On 7 August 2020 Ms R, social worker, visited the children as a follow up. E told Ms R that her father had put his tail in her and S’s mouths whilst they were sleeping in bed. Asked how she knew this if she had been asleep, she said that her mother had told her and S in the morning. S did not want to talk about the matter and left the room – “he appeared not willing to confirm what his mother had said or not said to them.”21.On 22 October 2020 the police and Ms R visited E at school. She said that she could not remember what her mother had told her about her father and denied having any worries about him, except that he would not play with her and lies in bed. She was asked to write down if her father had done anything to frighten her. She said “yes” but did not want to say anything more. She was asked if there was anything else she wanted to say and she wrote that the father had put his tail in her brother’s mouth and her mouth. She stated that it had happened when she had been in bed and that the police had come and had told her and the mother what had happened and had seen it through the window. The police recorded, “E cannot provide any detail to the allegation and told the Social Worker that she only knew about this because her mother had told her … The Social Worker strongly believes that E’s mother has told E what to say.”22.On 29 December 2020 when an unannounced visit was made by social workers Ms T and Ms R to the maternal grandmother’s home where the children and mother were present. Alone with S and the social workers, E began to write down, “I can remember what he done to mam, I do not want to see him anymore. I don’t like him anymore and he pulled my mam’s hair and he pinched my mam’s money and we had to go to nana’s house so he could sort himself out.” She then began to dictate what the social worker should write down for her, “In the very old house, dad thought that mam had a boyfriend but mam never and they fighted. Mam never, it was actually him.” At this point E asked that S should leave the room, which he did. She then said, “When me and S were asleep he put his tail in both our mouths. I was crying.” When asked how she knew this had happened to her, E said that when she woke up her dad was in the room. She said that she was sick after it happened and that she was sick every time that her mother and father had a fight. E said that she had not told her mother what had happened to her and S because she did not want to upset her mother. She was noted to have become extremely distressed and was visibly shaking. She said that when they lived in the refuge she was scared that the father would come there in the night. E wanted her mother to be told what she had said. In the presence of the mother she said again, “Dad put his tail in my mouth.” The mother was very upset on hearing this and E appeared to be very worried about her mother’s condition. 23.The following year, on 25 May 2021 Ms R, social worker, made a pre-arranged visit to the home where the mother and children were living. S appeared anxious to show her something on his mobile phone. He showed her a snapchat exchange with his paternal aunt, Aunt S. It read:S: “E said I just want to see you. E has told everyone”.Aunt S: “Told everyone what”S: “What dad did”Aunt S: “What did he do”S: “ I don’t want to talk about I just cry. How did L do that her arm I see her on TikTok”Aunt S: “Well I believe ya dad he loves yas to bits and hes trying everything to try n see yas. Anyway L fell over in school a love yous to bits xxx”When asked by Ms R what S had meant by what “dad did” he looked at the floor before replying, “shouted at her and punched her in the face over and over.” He then said that the father had shouted at him “with swear words”. When asked if his father had done anything else he did not like he looked at the floor. When asked if his father had touched him anywhere he did not like, he pointed to his penis. He said that his father had touched him there over his trousers and that when S has asked him what he was doing his father had walked away. This had happened, he said, when the family lived together when S had been in his bedroom and was playing on his computer game. It had happened “multiple times”. Sometimes his mother had been at the shops, sometimes she had been in the living room watching television. When Ms R asked what had happened to make him tell her he said, “because she doesn’t believe me” and made it clear he was referring to his Aunt S’s message on snapchat.24.Following these allegations by S, Ms R informed the police but there was some delay in the police visiting S with her until an arrangement was made to do so on 28 May 2021. Earlier on 28 May 2021 S approached his class teacher, Mr T. S revealed that he was worried about what the police were going to ask him. He said that he thought he knew what some of the questions may be but not all of them. He told Mr T that he would be woken by his sister saying that his mother and father were arguing. His father would hit his mother – he saw this “lots of times” and it made him feel scared. He saw his father kick and punch his mother. S then said that his father would come into his room when he was asleep and when his mother was out at the shops or asleep. His dad would get under the covers with him and this would wake him up. S appeared very sad when saying this and was “struggling to get his words out”. Mr T asked if he had told anyone else about this and S said he had told his social worker. Mr T asked if he had managed to tell them everything about it and he nodded. He said it made him feel scared, “I’m not sure how it works or if it’s supposed to hurt.” S did not want to talk about it further but did say that it was to do with his “Dad’s private parts but he was unsure what he did with it”. He then stopped talking.25.S was visited by a probationary officer and a special constable, along with Ms R on 28 May 2021. Regrettably there are no records of that visit. I heard from D.C. S who was allocated the case after 28 May 2021 and who visited S on 22 June 2021 for completion of a record of S’s allegations. S alleged that his father “touches my privates … I don’t like it. He shouldn’t do it.” When asked how many times he had done it he said, “Loads at our old house”.26.On 26 August 2021 social worker Ms L made a home visit to see E, S and the mother. Unusually the mother had called her during the day to confirm the time of her visit. Again unusually, S was downstairs on Ms L’s arrival and appeared to have been waiting for her. The mother told Ms L that she had found out more about what had happened to S and she became upset. At this point S was walking up the stairs which were open to the living room where the mother was talking. He was asked to come down. The mother went up the stairs but was noted to be hovering at the top. S talked to Ms L and occasionally nodded his head at her as he spoke. S said to Ms L, pointing down below, “well you know that my Dad put it up my bum.” Ms L was taken aback and asked if this was the first time he had said this to anyone and S nodded. She asked how many times this had happened and he said, “quite a lot.” It was in the family’s old house and the mother had been asleep or at the shops when it happened. The mother came down and sat next to S. She was very upset and E came to comfort her.27.On 2 September 2021 S was interviewed by DC H at an ABE interview in the presence of a registered intermediary, SS. She had carried out an assessment of S prior to the interview. I have read the transcript and viewed the video of the interview. S was unemotional during the interview although he appeared initially hesitant, looking to the intermediary for reassurance. He told DC H that he did not live with his father because “he done some nasty stuff to me and mum… and my sister.” He said this had happened about three years ago. DC H then said, “What I would like you to do is to tell me what your dad did to you.” S replied, “He stuck his tail up me bum”. DCI S was listening and watching from another room. He told the court that he had been taken by surprise by this allegation because S had not made it to him when he visited him in June 2021, and he had not been told that S had made such an allegation previously. S then said that the father “used to do it to my sister too … the same as me” and he confirmed by nodding that he meant “sticking his tail up her bum.” The officer later confirmed that by “tail” S meant penis.28.S was asked again about his age when this had started. He revised his initial evidence that it had been three years ago (when he would have been seven), saying that it had happened since he was four. A little while later he then said, “It might have been [when he was] six.” He could not say whether it had happened to him “a few times” or “lots of times”. It happened at night-time but sometimes in the morning when S had just woken up. The remaining salient parts of the interview need not be set out in his judgment.