Questions have been raised after a baby was seen by multiple health professionals just weeks before he was murdered by his adoptive father. Preston Davey was 13 months old when he was killed by Jamie Varley, 37, in Blackpool in July 2023.
Guilty Verdicts
On Monday, June 15, textiles teacher Varley was found guilty of sexual abuse and murder. His partner, financial sales manager John McGowan-Fazakerley, 32, was found guilty of allowing the death of a child, child cruelty, and sexual assault.
During the trial at Preston Crown Court, it emerged that Varley initially claimed he left Preston in the bath briefly and returned to find him submerged. However, a postmortem revealed Preston's hair was dry, and he had not swallowed any water. His cause of death was acute upper airways obstruction by an object or objects inserted into his mouth.
Missed Opportunities
Preston spent just four months in the couple's care. In that time, he was taken to hospital three times with injuries, including a broken elbow, and suffered 40 traumatic injuries. Despite social workers visiting twice and Lancashire Police being deployed once, the abuse went undetected.
An independent Child Safeguarding Practice Review, paused during criminal proceedings, will now restart to examine how authorities failed to protect the vulnerable child.
Early Life
Preston was born four weeks premature, weighing 5lb 7oz. His mother, convicted killer Sarah Davey, was serving time in the mother and baby unit at HMP Styal, and he was taken into emergency care by Oldham Council at five days old. For the first nine months, he was cared for by foster parents Sandra and Paul Cooper, under whom he thrived.
It was at the Coopers' home that Varley and McGowan-Fazakerley first met Preston during the mandatory familiarisation process. Sandra recalled feeling uneasy, noting the men seemed unable to care for an infant, forcing her to teach them basic parenting tasks.
Timeline of Warning Signs
Early April
On April 1, 2023, Preston was placed with Varley and McGowan-Fazakerley. Shortly after, Sandra contacted social services with a gut feeling that something was wrong, but her requests to visit were rebuffed.
Within days, Varley sent a chilling text to his sister: "He's dead meat today."
May 15 - 999 Call
McGowan-Fazakerley dialled 999 but hung up. The operator heard a voice saying "Put it down..." The couple claimed they meant to call 111. A health visitor visited the next day but reported the baby as well.
May 25 - First Hospital Visit
Preston was rushed to Blackpool Victoria Hospital after becoming floppy and unresponsive. Nurses noted suspicious bruising and logged unexplained injuries. Hospital safeguarding, social services, and police were notified, but Varley's explanation that Preston bumped his head while crawling was accepted.
June 30 - Second Hospital Visit
The couple returned with a rash, diarrhoea, vomiting, fever, and fresh bruises. They showed a video of Preston pulling a toy onto his head, but the video was 12 days old. Varley brazenly said: "You lot are going to think we have been abusing him."
July 3 - Social Worker Visit
Social worker Amy Shepherdson visited. She noted Preston looked pale but believed it was due to recent illness.
July 6 - Third Hospital Visit
Preston was brought in with a broken elbow. Varley gave conflicting explanations. The same day, Shepherdson texted Varley: "Just to reassure you they said they had absolutely no concerns."
July 7 - Independent Review
Independent reviewer Helen Magee conducted a visit. Aware of hospital admissions, she wrote: "Preston, I did watch your responses to your daddies quite carefully... I decided there wasn't an issue."
Mid-July - Confession to Co-worker
Varley admitted to a colleague he had dark thoughts about murdering the baby by suffocating or drowning him. Because he claimed he had confessed to his social worker, the colleague took no action.
On July 13, Varley's headteacher conducted a welfare check but left without concerns.
July 27 - Preston's Death
Varley rushed Preston to hospital, claiming he drowned in the bath. Preston died aged 13 months.
Reactions
A spokesperson for Adoption Now said: "This was a deeply upsetting case... An independent Child Safeguarding Practice Review is being completed." Oldham Council added: "The death of any child is a tragedy... We are thankful that the perpetrators have been convicted."
