Care Home Director On Neglect And Ill-Treatment Charges

Four people charged with neglecting residents at an old people’s home have today had their case adjourned until the New Year at the request of defence lawyers.

William Davies, the company’s managing director, 60, of The Manor House, West Street, Great Somerford, faces 17 charges of neglect and four charges of ill treatment, between July 8 2003 and July 26 2005.

He was one of four people due to be committed today for crown court trial. But Gloucester Magistrates court agreed, in the absence of the defendants, to adjourn until 18th February, when a 3 day committal hearing will be held.

The prosecution allege that residents at Newsham House in Stroud road, Gloucester, were neglected so badly that they were left to sleep beside their own waste.

The allegedly ‘disgusting’ conditions at Newsham House included mouldy faeces found in one of the rooms, filthy toilets, and the lack of any stimulating activity for the patients, Gloucester magistrates were told at an earlier hearing.

The four defendants are the managing director of Yorkshire-based ADL Ltd, which owns the home, its operations director and the Newsham House manager and deputy manager.

The home caters for 41 adults with mental disorders, such as dementia.

At the last court hearing the home’s deputy manager Heather Bolton, 56, of Westland Road, Hardwicke, Gloucester, indicated not guilty pleas to 10 charges relating to the ill-treatment or neglect of eight patients.

She denied neglect of Doreen Kirk, Dorothy Bates, Anne Kathleen Meecham, David Halling, Edina Slee, Irene Cole, and Frederick Hancox, when all were suffering from mental disorder. All charges relate to April 25 2005, except the allegation relating to Mr Halling which is dated May 2 2004.

Mrs Bolton also denied two charges of ill-treatment relating to Derek Powell, on April 26 and July 26 2005 by making him get out of bed unnecessarily early, and one charge of ill-treating Anne Meecham, again by making her get up early, on July 26 2005.

Operations director Pearl Jackson, 49, of Woolley Mill Cottage, Woolley Mill Lane, Notton, Wakefield, West Yorks, faces eight charges of neglect and two of ill-treatment, between May 2 2004 and July 26 2004.

Home manager Derek Youds, 65, of Victoria Cottages, Elmore Lane West, Quedgeley, Gloucester, faces 10 charges of neglect and two of ill-treatment between July 8 2003 and July 26 2005.

Mr Davies, Mr Youds and Mrs Jackson did not indicate pleas to any of the charges.

ADL Ltd also faces 9 charges of neglect and/or ill-treatment in its own right. Its lawyer indicated no pleas to the charges.

At today’s hearing solicitor Peter Griffin, representing Mr Youds, and Alex Bogustawski, representing the other three defendants, said there was too much paperwork in the case for them to be ready yet for a committal hearing.

Mr Bogustawski said they had received six thousand pages of exhibits and hundreds of witness statements.

Both he and Mr Griffin applied to the court to adjourn the committal hearing until next March to give them time for preparation.

But the court ruled that the hearing must take place between 18-20 February.

The prosecution were granted 28 days to serve their case papers and the defence were given until 26th January to file their skeleton argument. The Crown must respond to that by 8th Feb, the court ruled.

All four defendants had their uncondiitonal bail extended until 18th Feb when they must attend for the committal.