Parents lose custody of toddler over smoky home

A two-year-old boy has been taken from his parents’ care in the UK after a health visitor highlighted concerns about the level of cigarette smoke at his home.

Health visitor Julie Allen told a family court judge she had not come across such a “smoky house” in her 10-year career. She described the boy and his father being surrounded by a “visible cloud of smoke” and said she had difficulty breathing.

Judge Louise Pemberton, who was also told of other concerns about the way the youngster was being cared for, concluded that he should be placed for adoption.

Detail of the case has emerged in a written ruling by the judge following a family court hearing in Hull.

Judge Pemberton said the boy had breathing problems and needed an inhaler, and she said Allen had “graphically highlighted” concerns about smoke.

Health and social services staff had also raised other concerns about the boy’s care. The judge was told that the boy’s father had mental health problems, that there had been a “decline” in his parents’ “engagement with agencies”, that the boy’s home was “dirty, smelly, and unhygienic”.

She also heard “potential drug paraphernalia” had been spotted at the boy’s home and she said the boy’s father had tested positive for cocaine.

Judge Pemberton said she was “afraid” the boy had suffered harm. She said his parents’ care of him had fallen well below “good enough”. “I am afraid all of these matters lead me to an unavoidable and difficult conclusion that the risks in being placed with his parents are far too high,” said the judge.

“The parents have given me no confidence that they have sufficient understanding and awareness in relation to the professionals’ concerns to ensure that such concerns would not arise again in the future.”

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