It may seem incredible in this age, when there is so much data stored on people, that someone could simply disappear. But on that fine June day when the sun was shining and the air was alive with birdsong, and Lucy was nearly eleven months old, that is what Bonnie did. Fearing Lucy would be taken away from her, she quickly packed her bags and vanished. Had Lucy been the subject of a court order the police would have been alerted, and a missing person bulletin put out. But there was no court order, only a concern of neglect, the level of which hadn’t merited the measure of applying to the court for an emergency protection order. It’s true that the social services could have applied for a court order after Bonnie had gone, but they didn’t, presumably for the same reason one hadn’t been applied for before: that though Lucy had been neglected she wasn’t, as yet, at risk of significant harm – the threshold that needed to be reached before the social services applied for a care order. Had they done so, the police would have been alerted, resulting in a better chance of finding Bonnie and Lucy, and Lucy would have been taken into care.
With no court order and no verifiable details of Bonnie that might have helped trace her, it is likely their case stayed open at the social services for a few months – while Doris checked with Maggie and local agencies to see if anyone had heard from Bonnie – before being filed away until such time as Bonnie and Lucy reappeared. It’s on record that Maggie told Doris she’d telephoned her sister a couple of times during this period to see if she’d heard from Bonnie, but she hadn’t, and Maggie said her sister was so immersed in her own problems that she had little interest in what her daughter and granddaughter were doing or even in whether they were safe.
With no evidence to go on, it’s impossible to know of the life Bonnie and Lucy led during the next fourteen months while they were ‘missing’, but one can guess. Living ‘underground’, away from the attention of the authorities, relies on a hand-to-mouth existence, funded by cash-in-hand jobs if you are lucky, but more likely, borrowing, begging, stealing, prostitution and sleeping wherever you can: in doorways, under bridges, in squats, on someone’s floor, in cheap bed and breakfasts, or in beds with no breakfast. It would have been even more difficult with a baby, but unregistered, unregulated and unscrupulous landlords can be found down the backstreets of any big city, their clientele hearing of their location by word of mouth. These ‘landlords’ cram as many mattresses into a room as it will hold and charge only a few pounds for the night. They are always full. Not only with runaways, but the short- and long-term homeless, drug addicts, alcoholics, those with mental-health problems and criminals wanted by the police – of all ages and both sexes. Such places are health hazards and are often responsible for passing on infections; for example, tuberculosis. With no fire escapes they can also be death traps. But if you are avoiding the authorities as Bonnie was, you are unable to obtain benefit money without risk of being discovered.
When Bonnie and Lucy reappeared, fourteen months later, it was in the Accident and Emergency department of a hospital two counties away. It was a Friday afternoon and they were both suffering from highly inflamed rashes that covered large areas of their bodies. They were diagnosed as having scabies. Scabies is caused by parasites burrowing under the skin and laying their eggs. It is most commonly found in those living in overcrowded conditions with poor hygiene. The irritation caused by the infestation is unbearable and most sufferers go to their doctor in the early stages of the disease. The doctor at the hospital noted that these cases were very severe, especially in the child, and had clearly been left untreated for some time, causing the child a lot of distress. The doctor prescribed a lotion, which had to be applied after a bath from the neck down to the toes, left on overnight and then washed off. He explained to Bonnie that a second treatment would be needed a week after the first and told her to go to her own doctor to get the prescription for it and also to have their condition checked. He was concerned that some of the child’s sores were becoming infected, so he also prescribed an antibiotic cream. He explained that scabies was highly contagious and all clothing, bedding and towels used by them must be washed in very hot water and dried in a hot dryer to prevent another infestation. When registering at the hospital, Bonnie had given her address as the flat she’d lived in near her Aunt Maggie and her doctor as the one she’d seen when she’d first arrived at Maggie’s. It is unknown if Bonnie took Lucy to a doctor for a follow-up appointment; she certainly didn’t go to that doctor.
Bonnie and Lucy then disappeared again and reappeared when Lucy was nearly three years old. Bonnie was now living with a man in his thirties called Freddie – and using his surname for her and Lucy. She registered Lucy at a nursery so she could start just after her third birthday, and two nursery teachers made a home visit prior to Lucy starting. These home visits are normal practice in England; they are informal, last about half an hour and give the mother and child a chance to meet the nursery teachers and ask any questions. However, these two teachers were very worried by what they found, especially as their visit had been pre-arranged and was therefore expected. The one-bedroom flat was dirty, smelly and cluttered with bits of car engines, empty beer bottles, plastic fizzy-drink bottles, old pizza boxes and empty crisp packets, all of which Lucy was encouraged to play with in the absence of any children’s toys. There were no beds: Lucy slept with her mother and Freddie under blankets on mattresses on the bedroom floor; none of the rooms in the flat had carpets or curtains. There was a used cat-litter tray in the kitchen, which was badly in need of emptying, and the kitchen and bathroom were filthy. The nursery teachers also later noted that the flat reeked of stale beer, cigarette smoke and a slightly sweet smell, which could have been cannabis.
During their conversation, Bonnie admitted that she was struggling to cope and, far from being supportive, Freddie – who wasn’t present – spent most of his unemployment money on betting, so they never had enough to eat or pay the bills. They were behind with the rent and the landlord was threatening to evict them. Bonnie told the nursery teachers that she and Freddie often argued and he sometimes hit her – in front of Lucy. The teachers noted that Lucy was grubby, small for her age and afraid of strangers. They couldn’t say much about her development from their visit as she hid behind the sofa all the time they were there. When one of them tried to coax her out, she screwed her eyes shut and screamed. Bonnie said they should just leave her there as she was scared of strangers because of some bad experiences they’d had, although she didn’t say what these experiences were. Bonnie also said she hoped Lucy would learn to be less frightened of strangers when she went to nursery and ‘met some nice people’.
The nursery teachers were with Bonnie for over an hour and when they returned to the nursery they immediately held a meeting with their head teacher to report their concerns. The head teacher contacted the social services and two days later a social worker telephoned Bonnie and made an appointment to visit her the following day. Although Bonnie knew in advance that the social worker was visiting (as she had with the nursery teachers), she made no attempt to clean the flat, so it was in much the same condition as the teachers had reported. Freddie was there when the social worker arrived but left straight away, pushing past her in the hall without saying hello.
Bonnie admitted to the social worker that she wasn’t coping and said she felt very low and thought she was suffering from depression, although she hadn’t been to a doctor. The social worker explained to Bonnie that there were concerns about Lucy and tried to persuade Bonnie to see a doctor for her depression. They then discussed various options with regard to Lucy’s care. She was relieved that Bonnie was cooperative and quickly agreed that it would be best if Lucy went into care temporarily as an ‘accommodated child’ (under Section 20 of the Children Act). Often referred to as a ‘Section 20’, this is a voluntary arrangement between the social services and the parent(s) of a child who agree to the child living with a foster carer for a short time. The parent(s) retain full legal parental rights, which they wouldn’t do under any other care order. Approximately a third of children in foster care are ‘accommodated’. There is no court order and the arrangement should encourage a better working relationship between the social worker, the parent(s) and the foster carer. The parent(s) feel less threatened as they retain legal control of their child, have regular and unsupervised contact and can remove the child from foster care at any time. It is supposed to be a short-term measure and should never be used when a child is in danger of being abused; only when there is a good chance of the child being rehabilitated back to live with the parent(s) within a reasonable period.
Having gained Bonnie’s consent, the social worker returned to her office and set about finding a suitable foster carer for Lucy. Annie was identified: she was married, with two young girls of her own, and had been fostering for eighteen months. Under a Section 20 the parents know where the foster carer lives and can go with the social worker to the carer’s home when the child is placed, and so it was with Bonnie.
It was a hot day in late August when Bonnie and Lucy arrived in the social worker’s car. Bonnie carried Lucy into Annie’s hallway. Lucy had her head buried in her mother’s shoulder and was wearing a little pink cotton dress and plastic jelly sandals and was sucking on a grubby rag as a comforter. Bonnie, slightly built, with her hair in a ponytail, was dressed in jeans, T-shirt and badly worn plimsolls. She looked tired and very anxious. Looped over her arm was a supermarket carrier bag containing Lucy’s clothes.
Straight away Annie set about making Bonnie and Lucy feel welcome. She showed them into her living room, made them cold drinks and introduced them to her children, who were off school for the summer holiday. They talked for a while, with her and the social worker doing most of the talking, and then she showed them around the house. Bonnie marvelled at how nice Annie’s house was, and Annie felt sorry for her – she formed the impression that Bonnie hadn’t been in many decent homes, as hers was average and no different from many others. All this time Lucy wouldn’t be put down and when they returned to the living room she again sat on her mother’s lap with her face buried in her chest. Annie asked Bonnie about Lucy’s likes and dislikes and her routine, explaining that the more information she had about Lucy the easier it would be to settle her. Bonnie said that Lucy ate ‘anything really’ and went to bed and got up when she felt like it. Annie then asked if Lucy had a favourite toy – one she liked to take to bed – and Bonnie said, ‘Just that,’ referring to the frayed and dirty rag Lucy was sucking on.
Bonnie and the social worker stayed for an hour and during that time Lucy didn’t say a word or leave her mother’s lap. Despite a lot of encouragement from Annie and her two girls, Lucy sat facing her mother, refusing to look at anyone. Even when Annie’s two girls suggested they could all play in the garden and maybe Lucy would like an ice cream, she didn’t look at them. Bonnie told Annie, as she had the social worker and nursery teachers, that following ‘some bad experiences’ Lucy was afraid of strangers, although she didn’t elaborate.
Eventually the social worker said they should leave so that Annie could settle Lucy. Annie said she’d phone Bonnie to reassure her that Lucy was all right. Bonnie gave Lucy a quick kiss on the top of her head and said: ‘Mummy has to go.’ Standing, she placed Lucy on Annie’s lap and ran down the hall and out of the front door. Lucy immediately began screaming. Rigid with fear, she gripped Annie’s blouse and buried her head in Annie’s chest.
Concerned for Bonnie’s safety and having promised to take her home in her car, the social worker said a quick goodbye and went after Bonnie. She later noted that Lucy’s screaming was so loud it could be heard outside. There was no sign of Bonnie in the street, so she got into her car and returned to the office, intending to phone Bonnie later.
Inside the house, Annie was sitting on the sofa with her arms around Lucy, rocking her gently and quietly, talking to her, trying to reassure her as well as her own children, who were very worried at seeing a child so upset. It took half an hour to calm Lucy sufficiently so that Annie could persuade her to relax her grip a little and raise her head so Annie could wipe away her tears. As she did, Annie saw Lucy’s face properly for the first time. With her petite features, porcelain skin, black silky hair and large dark eyes she was like a little doll; a truly beautiful child, but one who was clearly very scared. Annie also noticed what looked like a bruise on Lucy’s cheek, just below her left eye, which she would mention in her log notes when she wrote them up later. All foster carers have to keep log notes. This is a daily record of the child or children they are looking after and includes appointments the child has, the child’s health and wellbeing, significant events and any disclosures the child may make about their past. When the child leaves the foster carer, this record is placed on file at the social services and can be looked at by the child when they are an adult.
Lucy didn’t speak at all that evening, refused all food and drink and cried so much at bedtime that Annie had to sleep on the floor in Lucy’s room, holding her hand and continuously reassuring her. The following two days were little better; Lucy didn’t speak or eat, cried incessantly and kept taking refuge behind the sofa, although after a lot of persuasion Annie did manage to get her to come out and drink some milk. Too frightened to tell anyone she needed the toilet, unsurprisingly Lucy kept soiling herself and Annie was constantly mopping up with a bucket of hot water and disinfectant, especially behind the sofa where Lucy would run and hide. When Annie telephoned Bonnie each evening, not wanting to worry her, she told her that Lucy missed her but was gradually settling in. It was difficult to know if Lucy was so upset because she was missing her mother. She didn’t ask for her or say ‘mummy’; she just seemed petrified of everyone and everything.
Annie wrote in her log notes that it was three days before Lucy ate anything, and then it was a yoghurt. She also stated that Lucy screamed hysterically when Annie’s support social worker visited, when Annie’s husband returned from work, when the postman rang the doorbell and when a friend of Annie’s stopped by in the evening. It was clear (as Bonnie had said) that Lucy must indeed have had some bad experiences with strangers to make her so scared. As well as noting the bruise on Lucy’s cheek in her log notes, Annie also mentioned it to the social worker. She subsequently asked Bonnie how Lucy had got the bruise and Bonnie replied that Lucy had tripped and fallen at the flat the day before. Perhaps she had. There was no way to know.
It soon became clear to Annie that Lucy wasn’t used to a routine of any sort, so Annie began establishing one, explaining to Lucy why it was important that we wash, brush our teeth each morning and evening and eat regular meals. On day five Annie introduced bath time into Lucy’s evening routine, and although Lucy shied away from the bath to begin with – as Annie turned on the taps and ran the water – after a lot of persuading and cajoling Lucy climbed in. Once she was in and felt the warm water lapping around her she began to relax and then actually enjoyed her bath, playing with the bath toys that Annie provided, while Annie washed her hair, which was very dirty. By the end of that first week Lucy had begun responding slightly more to Annie and her family, saying the odd word, pointing to what she wanted and answering their questions with a nod or a shake of her head, pretty much as a one-year-old child would.
Annie desperately needed to go shopping to buy clothes for Lucy as hardly anything in the carrier bag that Bonnie had brought with her was usable. Annie was dressing Lucy in the clothes she kept for emergency placements, but she wanted to buy new things so Lucy would have clothes of her own. However, she knew from her foster-carer training that, as a deprived child, Lucy shouldn’t be subjected to too many new experiences all at once, as she would panic and it could set back her recovery. On day eight, just over a week after Lucy had arrived, when she was crying less and letting the girls take her by the hand and spend a little time playing in the back garden, Annie decided to risk taking her shopping. She explained to Lucy where they were going and why and Lucy nodded in response. But once in the shopping centre, Lucy was so scared of all the people, noise and lights that she wouldn’t let Annie put her down and had to be carried everywhere. Annie kept their shopping trip short and just bought the essentials. Later Annie noted that Lucy’s life seemed to have been so confined and limited that even a routine shopping trip scared her, and she wondered if Lucy had ever been shopping before.
Gradually, over the coming days, weeks and then months, Annie introduced Lucy to new experiences: playing in the park and feeding the ducks, for example; as well as slowly getting her used to meeting people – Annie’s extended family, friends and other children. To begin with Lucy had no idea how to play or interact with other children, presumably because she’d never mixed. Any thoughts of nursery were put on hold as Lucy would never have coped, so Annie began taking her to a mother-and-toddler group two afternoons a week where Annie stayed while Lucy slowly found the confidence to leave her lap and tentatively play with the other children. Although the children were much younger than Lucy, Lucy was so far behind in her development that she could relate to them a little, rather than to children her own age.
Annie had registered Lucy at her doctor’s and Lucy subsequently had a medical, and also a developmental check-up. Physically, Lucy was small for her age – probably as a result of poor nutrition – but equally worrying was that she had a vocabulary of only ten words, a milestone usually reached by a child at eighteen months. However, the good news was that the tests appeared to show Lucy had normal intelligence, so it was hoped that with a lot of help she would eventually be able to catch up with her peers. Speech therapy was suggested and Lucy was put on the waiting list. At home, Annie continued with the work she’d already begun to develop Lucy’s skills, experiences and language – through play and by talking to her and encouraging her to talk back. It is to Annie’s credit that Lucy improved as much as she did during the time she was with her.
Lucy’s new doctor applied for Lucy’s medical notes, but all that came back was the record of the visit Bonnie and Lucy had made to Maggie’s doctor. Their visit to the Accident and Emergency department at the hospital didn’t show up, presumably because of the way visits were logged and recorded at that time. Also, there was no record of Lucy having had any of her infant vaccinations, and when Bonnie was asked if she’d had them she said she couldn’t remember. So, with Bonnie’s consent, over the next six months Annie took Lucy to the clinic for the vaccinations she should have had as a baby.
Annie had been telephoning Bonnie every evening to reassure her that Lucy was all right, and if she didn’t answer – which was often – she left a message for her. After a few weeks the social worker told Annie she should stop, as the emphasis was on Bonnie telephoning Annie to find out how her daughter was doing – it would be seen as an indication of her level of commitment and how serious she was in wanting her daughter back. Annie did as she was told and Bonnie fell into the pattern of phoning once a week and visiting Lucy about once every ten days. Bonnie usually stayed for a whole morning or afternoon and never wanted to take Lucy out, even when the weather was good. Bonnie seemed to enjoy the comforts of Annie’s home and being looked after as much as Lucy. Annie formed the impression that Bonnie wasn’t a vicious or uncaring mother, but had had such a bad start in life herself and now had so many problems of her own that she struggled to look after a child. Annie also noted that sometimes she thought she could smell cannabis on Bonnie’s clothes when she came into the house, but obviously she didn’t know if Bonnie was a user or not.
Lucy improved dramatically in the eight months she lived with Annie and her family. She gradually lost her fear of strangers, began playing and talking more, and was starting to catch up with her peer group. Annie took lots of photographs of Lucy during this time and some of the most poignant are of Lucy’s third birthday and her first proper Christmas, where the look of astonishment and sheer joy on her face says it all. She was clearly overwhelmed, having never experienced anything like it before. Annie also took photographs of Bonnie and Lucy together, some of which she framed and put in Lucy’s room, to keep the memory of her mother alive between visits. She gave Bonnie copies of the photographs and Bonnie thanked her profusely. She was really touched, having never had a photograph of her daughter before; she’d never been able to afford a camera. Lucy clearly became very secure and settled with Annie and began calling her mummy, although Annie always corrected her and said: ‘I’m Annie. You’ll be seeing mummy next Tuesday’ – or whenever it was she would be seeing her, and pointed to Bonnie’s photograph.
Although Annie and her family knew that Lucy’s stay was likely to be temporary on a Section 20, and that once Bonnie had sorted out her life she would want her daughter back, Annie had reasonably assumed that the transition to return Lucy to her mother would be gradual. Bonnie would visit more often and then take her daughter home for short periods that would eventually include overnight stays and finally lead to a move home. This is how a planned move should be done for any child in care to minimize disruption and confusion for the child.
It therefore came as a great shock when, in the middle of one morning when Lucy had been with Annie for just over eight months, Annie answered the telephone to Bonnie who told her she would be coming to take Lucy that afternoon. Bonnie said she now had a new partner – Dave – who treated her right, and they wanted to be together as a family. Annie was shocked, upset and very concerned about the effect a sudden move would have on Lucy. She tried to persuade Bonnie that they should speak to the social worker and arrange a more gradual move – for Lucy’s sake. But Bonnie was adamant and knew her rights. She said she’d already told the social worker that she and Dave would be coming for Lucy that afternoon, and asked Annie to have Lucy ready by one o’clock. As soon as Bonnie hung up Annie called the social worker, who confirmed that Bonnie had telephoned her and that, although she would have preferred a gradual reintroduction, as Lucy was placed under a Section 20 Bonnie was free to take Lucy whenever she wanted to. She added that Bonnie had given her their new address and she would be visiting them to make sure all was well. If she had any concerns, Lucy would be brought back into care – preferably with Bonnie’s agreement, but if necessary with a court order. This reassured Annie a little, but not much.
With a very heavy heart, fighting back tears and trying to put on a brave face for Lucy’s sake, Annie used the little time they had left together to try and prepare Lucy for going to live with her mother and Dave, as well as packing all Lucy’s clothes and toys, of which there were now many. Lucy became very quiet and withdrawn, refused lunch and then asked Annie why she had to go. When Annie explained that her mummy loved her and she wanted her to live with her in her new home Lucy said: ‘Can’t Mummy come and live here with us?’
Clearly that wasn’t possible and it was very difficult to try and explain this, and why she was suddenly having to leave, to a small child. Annie then spent the next hour cuddling Lucy on her lap and reading her stories to try to distract her until the doorbell rang at one o’clock. Lucy went with Annie to answer the door. Bonnie was in the porch, and parked outside was an old white van with its engine running and a man – presumably Dave – waiting in the driver’s seat.
‘Come and meet your new daddy,’ Bonnie said, taking Lucy by the hand.
Giving Annie and Lucy no chance to say goodbye, Bonnie hurried Lucy down the path towards the van. She put Lucy in the front and slammed the door shut. She then returned for Lucy’s belongings, which Annie had ready in bags and boxes in the hall. Without any thanks for all Annie had done or a promise to stay in touch and let Annie know how Lucy was, Bonnie began loading the van. Annie helped her. The rear of the van contained decorating materials, so Annie assumed Dave was a painter and decorator. He didn’t turn or say hello.
Once all Lucy’s belongings were in the van, Bonnie shut the rear door while Dave stayed in the van. Bonnie said a terse goodbye to Annie and climbed into the front of the van next to Lucy. Lucy was small, and, as she was sandwiched between the adults, Annie couldn’t see her from the pavement, but she waved anyway. With Lucy now gone, there was no need for Annie to put on a brave face any longer and by the time she reached her front door she was crying openly. Not only for the uncertainty that Lucy faced, but for her own loss and that of her family, who would come home and find Lucy gone, having not been able to say goodbye.