Mum left seriously ill boy, 13, home alone

A Powys mother left her seriously ill teenage son home alone while she went out at night to see her boyfriend, a court heard.

The 13-year-old boy ended up fighting for his life in intensive care the following day after being diagnosed with viral meningitis. The boy had complained of chest problems.

The mother-of-two from Welshpool, who cannot be named for legal reasons, admitted child neglect at Welshpool Magistrates Court yesterday.

Mrs Helen Tench, prosecuting, said on July 9, the boy and his mother had visited Welshpool Medical Practice, after he had complained of chest problems.

She said the doctor had prescribed him with antibiotics and said the medication would need to be collected from Rowlands' Pharmacist in Welshpool. But the medication was not collected.

That evening the defendant went out for the night and left her son at home with his friend. He was sick during the night but his mother did not return home until the following morning, said Mrs Tench.

The court heard an ambulance attended just after noon the following day - July 10 - and found the boy lying face down in the living room, clearly unwell, with a rash all over his body.

He was semi-conscious. She said the boy was taken to the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and diagnosed with meningitis before being rushed to the intensive care unit at Birmingham Children's Hospital.

Mr Robert Hanratty, defending, said: "My client accepts that she should have actively pursued medical help for her son but she didn't and it led to a two to three hour delay in her son receiving medical treatment.

"But she never deliberately did anything to expose her son to harm. She would never have left her son if she thought he was seriously ill," he said.

The case was adjourned until October 19 for reports.

By Anwen Evans