Pre-School Worker Pleads Guilty to Manslaughter of 14-Month-Old Boy at Daycare: Reports
14-month-old toddler Noah Sibanda died "following an incident" at Fairytales Day Nursery in the West Midlands, U.K. on Dec. 9, 2022
Nursery worker Kimberley Cookson, 22, pleaded guilty to one count of manslaughter at Wolverhampton Crown Court on Tuesday, June 10, according to reports
Nursery director Deborah Latewood, 54, and Fairytales Day Nursery also face charges in connection with the toddler's deathA nursery practitioner has admitted to the manslaughter of a toddler in England.
Kimberley Cookson, 22, pleaded guilty to one count of gross negligence manslaughter in court on Tuesday, June 10, in connection with the death of 14-month-old Noah Sibanda at Fairytales Day Nursery in the West Midlands' town of Dudley, U.K. outlets ITV News and Hereford Times reported.
Sibanda died 'following an incident' at the nursery on Dec. 9, 2022, Malcolm McHaffie, Head of the Crown Prosecution Service's Special Division, stated in a press release in April.
'Following a review of the evidence provided by West Midlands Police, we have authorised criminal charges in relation to the death of a 14-month-old child at a nursery in Dudley," said McHaffie.
Deborah Latewood, 54, the director and owner of Fairytales Day Nursery, was charged with failing to comply with general duties under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, according to the release. She pleaded not guilty in court on Tuesday, ITV News reported.
Fairytales Nursery Limited, which is no longer in operation, was charged with one count of corporate manslaughter and failing to comply with a duty under the Health and Safety at Work Act. The firm entered a plea of not guilty to the charge, per the Hereford Times.
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According to the outlet, the company was alleged to have 'failure to ensure that children in the baby room were put down to sleep in a safe way, failure to ensure that staff were adequately trained to put babies down to sleep and failure to ensure staff were adequately supervised while doing so.'
Following the tragic death of Sibanda, Fairytales Nursery Limited had its registration suspended by the Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) after the department 'believed children may be at risk of harm,' per ITV News.
The outlet reported that Judge Michael Chambers KC said the company and Latewood would likely face a trial in 2026, though he did not confirm a date.
Cookson and Latewood were reportedly released on unconditional bail until the next hearing, which is said to be set for Dec. 5.
Judge Chambers said, per ITV News, 'In your case, Kimberley Cookson, you have had the courage to plead guilty and will get the appropriate credit for that plea. I am adjourning your sentencing until the conclusion of the trial, so the judge will have all the facts of the case.'
PEOPLE reached out to the CPS for comment, but they did not immediately respond.
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Yahoo
2 days ago
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Pre-School Worker Pleads Guilty to Manslaughter of 14-Month-Old Boy at Daycare: Reports
14-month-old toddler Noah Sibanda died "following an incident" at Fairytales Day Nursery in the West Midlands, U.K. on Dec. 9, 2022 Nursery worker Kimberley Cookson, 22, pleaded guilty to one count of manslaughter at Wolverhampton Crown Court on Tuesday, June 10, according to reports Nursery director Deborah Latewood, 54, and Fairytales Day Nursery also face charges in connection with the toddler's deathA nursery practitioner has admitted to the manslaughter of a toddler in England. Kimberley Cookson, 22, pleaded guilty to one count of gross negligence manslaughter in court on Tuesday, June 10, in connection with the death of 14-month-old Noah Sibanda at Fairytales Day Nursery in the West Midlands' town of Dudley, U.K. outlets ITV News and Hereford Times reported. Sibanda died 'following an incident' at the nursery on Dec. 9, 2022, Malcolm McHaffie, Head of the Crown Prosecution Service's Special Division, stated in a press release in April. 'Following a review of the evidence provided by West Midlands Police, we have authorised criminal charges in relation to the death of a 14-month-old child at a nursery in Dudley," said McHaffie. Deborah Latewood, 54, the director and owner of Fairytales Day Nursery, was charged with failing to comply with general duties under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, according to the release. She pleaded not guilty in court on Tuesday, ITV News reported. Fairytales Nursery Limited, which is no longer in operation, was charged with one count of corporate manslaughter and failing to comply with a duty under the Health and Safety at Work Act. The firm entered a plea of not guilty to the charge, per the Hereford Times. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. According to the outlet, the company was alleged to have 'failure to ensure that children in the baby room were put down to sleep in a safe way, failure to ensure that staff were adequately trained to put babies down to sleep and failure to ensure staff were adequately supervised while doing so.' Following the tragic death of Sibanda, Fairytales Nursery Limited had its registration suspended by the Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) after the department 'believed children may be at risk of harm,' per ITV News. The outlet reported that Judge Michael Chambers KC said the company and Latewood would likely face a trial in 2026, though he did not confirm a date. Cookson and Latewood were reportedly released on unconditional bail until the next hearing, which is said to be set for Dec. 5. Judge Chambers said, per ITV News, 'In your case, Kimberley Cookson, you have had the courage to plead guilty and will get the appropriate credit for that plea. I am adjourning your sentencing until the conclusion of the trial, so the judge will have all the facts of the case.' PEOPLE reached out to the CPS for comment, but they did not immediately respond. Read the original article on People
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Nursery worker admits manslaughter after death of 14-month-old boy
A nursery worker has admitted manslaughter in connection with the death of a 14-month-old boy. Kimberley Cookson, 22, appeared at Wolverhampton Crown Court on Tuesday and pleaded guilty to one count of gross negligence manslaughter following the death of Noah Sibanda, who died after an incident at Dudley's Fairytales Day Nursery on December 9 2022. Business owner Deborah Latewood, 54, appeared alongside Cookson in the dock and pleaded not guilty to failing to comply with a duty under the Health and Safety at Work Act to ensure that Noah and others were not exposed to risk between November 29 and December 9 2022. A plea of not guilty was entered on behalf of the firm which ran the now-closed nursery, based in Bourne Street, to one count of corporate manslaughter, including an alleged failure to ensure that children in the baby room were put down to sleep in a safe way, failure to ensure that staff were adequately trained to put babies down to sleep and failure to ensure staff were adequately supervised while doing so. The company also pleaded not guilty to failing to comply with a duty under the Health and Safety at Work Act to ensure that Noah and others were not exposed to risk between November 29 and December 9 2022. Cookson, who wore a green shirt, and Latewood, who wore a white shirt and a grey blazer, spoke only to confirm their date of birth and to enter their pleas in front of the courtroom, which was packed with members of Noah's family and supporters of the defendants. Judge Michael Chambers KC said Latewood and the company would face a trial, likely to be in 2026, but did not set a date. Cookson will be sentenced upon conclusion of the trial, which is expected to last three weeks and both Cookson and Latewood were released on unconditional bail until the next hearing. Judge Chambers said: 'In your case, Kimberley Cookson, you have had the courage to plead guilty and will get the appropriate credit for that plea. 'I am adjourning your sentencing until the conclusion of the trial, so the judge will have all the facts of the case.' He warned both defendants that if they did not appear for their trial, they could face further criminal proceedings. A pre-trial review hearing was set for December 5.
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