Adoptive Exeter mother guilty of child cruelty

One of the first single women to be allowed to adopt in the UK has been convicted of child cruelty. The 43-year-old pushed her 12-year-old boy’s face into a plate of spaghetti and kicked him on the floor, a court heard.

The woman admitted cruelty when questioned by police, adding that she had asked social services for help to keep him under control

A judge at Exeter Crown Court gave her a conditional discharge after she pleaded guilty to one charge of child cruelty on Tuesday, representing several years of abuse.

The woman, who cannot be named, took the boy in after the Adoption and Children Act was passed in 2002.

Last year, a social worker spotted a pinch mark on the boy’s arms and the legal process began, the court heard.

Among other incidents described by the boy were being made to bend over, with the woman lying on top of him, to punish him for not cleaning his teeth.

The woman admitted cruelty when questioned by police, adding that she had asked social services for help to keep him under control.

Recorder Mark Evans QC accepted that she had sought help from various agencies, yet received little assistance.

The woman, who is from Exeter but cannot be identified, will not be allowed to adopt again.

The boy, whose identity is also protected, has been given a new home.

A Devon County Council spokeswoman said the adoption had been organised by a private agency. The authority said it had worked closely with the police to bring the case to court.