Ten chances to save Preston Davey before murder by adoptive ‘father’ | UK | News

The trial heard Preston Davey was hospitalized three times and assessed by a number of specialists just weeks before he was murdered by his “purely evil” adoptive parents.

These missed opportunities will now be examined as authorities examine how authorities handled the case of a 13-month-old boy who was mistreated by his adoptive parents.

Yesterday, textile teacher Jamie Varley, 37, was found guilty of sexual abuse and murder, while his partner, financial sales manager John McGowan-Fazakerley, 32, was found guilty of allowing the death of a child, cruelty to a child and sexual assault.

Varley initially attempted to conceal his actions by claiming that he had briefly left Preston in the bathroom and when he returned he found her underwater. However, the autopsy revealed that this was a malicious lie.

Preston’s hair was dry and he had not swallowed any water; The actual cause of death was “acute obstruction of the upper respiratory tract due to an object or objects inserted into the mouth.”

Preston spent only four months in the couple’s care. During this short period, he was transported to hospital on three separate occasions with injuries including a fractured elbow and suffered 40 traumatic injuries.

Despite social workers visiting the property twice and Lancashire Police attending once, the abuse went unnoticed. The independent Child Safeguarding Enforcement Review, which was suspended during the criminal case, will now continue examining how authorities failed to protect the vulnerable child from an adoptive father who treated her like a “toy”.

Preston was born four weeks early and weighed 5lb 7oz. Her mother, convicted murderer Sarah Davey, was serving her sentence in the mother and baby unit at HMP Styal and she was placed in emergency care by Oldham Council when she was five days old.

For the first nine months of his life, Preston was cared for by foster parents Sandra and Paul Cooper. Under their care, he was a “thriving” baby and his only medical problem was a minor acid reflux issue. Varley and McGowan-Fazakerley first met at Cooper’s home during the mandatory orientation process before officially adopting Preston. Sandra immediately remembered feeling uneasy, noting that the two men seemed to have no idea how to care for a baby, forcing her to teach them basic parenting duties.

Missed chances to save Preston

1. On 1 April 2023, Preston was officially placed alongside Varley and McGowan-Fazakerley. Shortly after the handover, Sandra contacted social services after having a nagging feeling that something was wrong. She tried to visit Preston to check on the baby she was caring for, but she said the couple repeatedly denied her requests.

Early April – Varley calls Preston ‘dead meat’

2. A few days after bringing Preston home, Varley sent a disturbing text message to his sister after a night of trouble, writing: “Dead meat today. Didn’t sleep after 11.30 last night. Up every hour and a half.”

May 15 – Ominous 999 call

3. McGowan-Fazakerley called 999 but they suddenly hung up.

The emergency operator noted that he heard a voice in the background saying, “Put it down..”

When the operator called back, the pair claimed they had planned to call the non-emergency 111 line to report that Preston was experiencing “breathing problems”. A health visitor made a scheduled visit to the property the following day but reported that the baby appeared well.

May 25 – First hospital visit

4. Preston was rushed to Blackpool Victoria Hospital after becoming limp and unresponsive.

Varley claimed he suffered nosebleeds, had a seizure and had difficulty breathing. However, pediatric sister Zoe Hellowell and Nurse Holly Edwards noted extremely suspicious bruising to Preston’s head and “unexplained injuries are inconsistent with the version of events described.”

Hospital security teams, social services and Lancashire Police were notified. But Varley spoke softly to authorities, insisting that her adopted son had hit his head while learning to crawl.

The statement was accepted and no further action was taken.

June 30 – Second hospital visit

5. When the couple returned to the hospital, Preston was suffering from a rash, diarrhea, vomiting, a high fever and new bruises on his head.

To explain this, the couple showed doctors a video of Preston pulling a toy on his head while playing. In reality, the video had been shot 12 days earlier and could not have caused new injuries, which was only discovered later.

During the visit, Varley cheekily told hospital staff: “You’ll think we’re harassing her or something.”

July 3 – Social worker visit

6. Social worker Amy Shepherdson visited the home on July 3.

He noted that the baby looked “a little pale” and “wasn’t himself,” but documented that he believed this was the result of a recent illness.

July 6 – Third hospital visit

7. Just three days later, Preston was brought back to the hospital with a broken elbow.

Varley gave hospital staff conflicting and inconsistent explanations as to how the injury occurred, eventually settling on the claim that it occurred while she was placing her adoptive son in his cot.

The same day, Shepherdson, who had been in contact with the hospital, texted Varley to say: “Just to reassure you, they said they had absolutely no concerns. You did absolutely the right thing.”

7 July – An independent review by social services

8. Independent critic Helen Magee made a planned visit on behalf of Oldham Council.

Conscious of his frequent hospitalizations, he wrote a report directly addressed to the baby: “Preston, I have watched your responses to their father quite carefully, as I am aware that you have been admitted to hospital several times of late, and this has given me some thought as to whether there is something wrong that I am not seeing.

“I decided there was no problem.”

Mid-July – a terrible confession to a co-worker

9. Varley, who had been on a one-year adoption permit, showed up at the school where she worked, with Preston’s plastered arm visibly visible.

While there, she admitted to colleague Janet Gee that she was having “dark thoughts” about killing the baby by suffocating or suffocating her. While Varley claimed she had already disclosed this to the social worker, Gee took no further action.

July 13 – education boss left carefree

10. When Varley’s headteacher learned the couple were suffering from mental health problems, he conducted a welfare check at their home but left without raising any concerns.

July 27 – tragic end

Varley took the child to the hospital for the last time, claiming that the baby drowned in the bath, and Preston died in the hospital when he was only 13 months old. Following the guilty verdicts, a spokesperson for Adopt Now said: “This was an extremely distressing situation and our thoughts are with everyone affected by these truly horrific crimes. Adopt Now follows a strict and rigorous process that complies with all legislation and guidance on the assessment and approval of adopters. An independent Child Safeguarding Practice Review is being completed.”

Oldham Council said: “The death of any child is a tragedy, but this is a particularly heartbreaking and disturbing case. “We are grateful that the perpetrators of the sickening murder and abuse of an innocent child have been convicted for their crimes today.

“An independent Child Safeguarding Practice Review is currently underway which will examine how Preston’s safeguarding was handled.

“Our thoughts are with Preston’s family, loved ones and the many people affected by this case.”