Cruel Wakefield mum and partner inflicted horrific bruises on her two-year-old boy

Leeds Crown Court heard that the couple subjected the boy to "excessive force", leaving him with purple bruising to his upper legs. The couple, who cannot be named to protect the child's identity, were found guilty of child cruelty after a seven-day trial.

The main witnesses giving evidence during the trial was the woman's two older children. The mother, who is from the Wakefield area, had begun a relationship with her new partner but the unemployed pair would drink and take cocaine all night and then sleep all day.

One of the young children said the boyfriend's involvement caused the family to "totally separate", that he took advantage and manipulated the 38-year-old mother, forcing her to "choose him over her children".

The girl said they would regularly strike the toddler, slapping him mainly to his upper thigh. They would lock him in his room and if he banged on the door, they would both go to his room, take his trousers down and slap him further. The boy's sister told the court it left him scared and he would hide behind the curtains. He would be left crying for hours as his mother and her partner lay asleep during the day. The child's injuries came to the attention of the authorities after the boy's aunty noticed the multiple bruising to his thighs in July 2021. The court heard that the aunty was left "feeling sick" by what she found. A paediatrician concluded that the bruises were "consistent with him being slapped with an open hand with excessive force and likely to have been on multiple occasions".

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Mitigating for the mother, Holly Clegg said the woman "did not recognise how unwell she was at the time". She said the woman has since ended the relationship with the boyfriend and added: "She has learned from her mistake and the type of people she engages with. She has addressed her substance misuse and no longer has an issue in that regard.

"She is willing to engage with probation services. She does not want to be in this position again or act in this way again. She wants to prove she has changed." The court heard that she has no previous convictions.

Judge Simon Phillips KC was persuaded to not lock her up, telling her she avoided prison by a "thread". Instead, he gave the maximum suspendible sentence available - 24 months' jail, suspended for 24 months. He also told her to complete 100 hours of unpaid work, 30 rehabilitation days and gave her a 90-day electronically-tagged alcohol abstinence requirement.

Her partner, who was remanded into custody, will be sentenced at a later date.