Thu, 23 Jun 2011
An inquiry has been carried out after a baby known to Birmingham Social Services died after she was shaken and hurled into her cot by her uncle.
Staff involved in the case of four-month-old Aalihya Jordan Fellows, of Kings Heath, were removed from front line work following the death of the girl in December 2008.
Jason Roberts, (24) of Ossmore Road, Bartley Green, was cleared of murder at Birmingham Crown Court but is facing a prison sentence after admitting manslaughter.
The child’s mother Bobbiellen Jordan admitted a charge of child cruelty and was given a three-year community order.
The court heard she had exposed her daughter to an environment where adults “drank excessively, took drugs and played loud music for lengthy periods”.
Following the baby’s death, the city council carried out a serious case review into her care, which will be published shortly.
The case is a fresh child protection controversy for the city council, which admitted “flaws” in the way it was handled.
Aalihya died in December 2008, just seven months after Khyra Ishaq was starved to death by her mother and stepfather in a tragedy which saw city social workers and education officials condemned by a High Court judge.
In the latest case, Christopher Hotten QC, prosecuting at Birmingham Crown Court, said Jordan, (21), of Yarningale Road, Kings Heath, “neglected” her daughter after starting a new relationship.
He said Jordan, whose two other children are in care, left Aalihya with Roberts even when she had been advised not to.
Roberts ended up shaking the baby and hurling her back into her cot when he became tired of her crying.
She suffered a fractured skull and other injuries and died at Birmingham Children’s Hospital on New Year’s Eve.
Sarah Buckingham, defending, said Jordan was of limited intellect, had been in foster care and had no “positive” role models over a number of years.
