C City Council v T & Ors
2014
FAMILY DIVISION
United Kingdom
CORAM
- HIS HONOUR JUDGE CLEARY
Areas of Law
- Family Law
- Evidence Law
2014
FAMILY DIVISION
United Kingdom
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
The case involves four Romanian children, three of whom were allegedly physically abused by their parents after one child, E, suffered burns. Initial care proceedings were triggered by the lack of immediate medical treatment for E's burns and disclosures made to foster carers. Medical experts provided conflicting opinions on the cause and nature of the burns, resulting in prolonged court proceedings with multiple judges overseeing the case. Ultimately, independent medical assessments concluded that the burns were accidental, the parents' response was appropriate, and no substantial evidence of abuse was found, leading to the parents' exoneration.
JUDGMENT
HHJ CLEARY:
I have been asked to deliver a short judgment on the outcome of this case by those representing the children, primarily, I think, to assist them and their parents in time to come, and to make it plain to those who are assisting the family or providing services for them, just how it is that they find themselves in the unhappy position which has been identified as this case has unwound. Thus the school, and also the general practitioner, certainly the Local Authority and the children should be appraised of that which has transpired and I will endeavour in what I hope will not be too lengthy or clumsy a judgment to outline that which has happened, that which I trust is going to happen hereafter, and perhaps a nod towards the manner in which future cases might be undertaken, or at least the lessons which can be learned from this case.
The case concerns four children: E, who was born on 10 th June 2009; her elder sister D, born on 19 th November 2008; her elder brother Y born on 16 th December 2004, and the youngest of all, R, born 20 th October 2012. It will perhaps become clearer as I deliver this judgment why it is that E, who is the second youngest, is the first to be identified.
Their parents are T and C. Both parents hail from Romania. They have been described in these proceedings as Roma and even as Roma gypsies. Whether that is entirely accurate or a description with which they are content is not something upon which I have been addressed for they are not leading a gypsy existence. They are living in C and have been for some time and are secure in Local Authority accommodation where they were bringing up their children without incident until 9 th July 2013.
Two days before that, on 7 th July 2013, E suffered burns to her body. It is pertinent to read from the Local Authority case summary to describe how it is that those burns and the consequences of the little girl’s presentation then unravelled and caused this court to be engaged in subsequent care proceedings. The case summary says this:
‘The parents did nothing to have these burns treated by a medical professional until they were discovered following a referral from the HFC Primary School on Tuesday, 9 th July 2013.’
The case summary then sets out the recording provided by that school, which reads as follows:
‘EW,’ who, as I understand it, is an 11-year-old attending that school, ‘reported to her teacher as follows. Monday’ – that is 8 th July – ‘seven o’clock-ish outside