Woman Jailed For Making Son Drink Bleach

A mum from Barking who made her autistic son drink bleach has been jailed for seven years for his manslaughter.

The Old Bailey heard Satpal Kaur Singh struggled to cope looking after son Ajit and feared he would be taken away.

The 45 year old made the 12 year old drink a cup of Domestos in February last year, just hours after she refused to co-operate with council staff at a meeting over his care.

She also drank some herself and in a suicide note said she had done it after being ''scrutinised and hounded by social services''.

A Jury at the Old Bailey were told her ''obvious'' mental health problems were recognised yet she was ''allowed to resist help''.

David Hislop QC said: ''Neighbours knew, school teachers knew, social services knew, but the tragedy for Ajit was that nothing was done.''

Singh, of Lambourne Road, Barking, east London, was jailed for seven years after she pleaded guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility at an earlier hearing.

Judge Peter Beaumont told her: ''I recognise how difficult Ajit was to care for.

''Your deteriorating mental health robbed you of proper insight into what was going wrong and erected real obstacles between you and people and the agencies that were trying so hard to help you.''

Barking and Dagenham council said a serious case review was expected to be completed in the next few weeks.

In a statement they say: ''Barking and Dagenham Council's thoughts, first and foremost, continue to be with the Singh family.

''The council contributed to an independent serious case review to look into all details of this case and to address lessons arising.

''Barking and Dagenham Safeguarding Children Board will publish the findings of that independent review in due course.''