A St Helens care worker who performed a sex act on a patient at the Dream sculpture near the M62 has been spared prison after admitting a gross abuse of trust. Nicole Worthington, 33, of Devon Street, repeatedly engaged in sexual activity with a service user receiving long-term residential treatment following a serious injury.
Liverpool Crown Court heard on Friday, November 6, that the patient had been admitted to a long-term residential rehabilitation facility due to a long-standing injury. The injury left him with "cognitive, psychological, social and behavioural issues", causing "impaired memory and slow processing speed".
Relationship began after flirtatious contact
Olivia Beesley, prosecuting, described how a social worker contacted police in March last year to report that Worthington, who worked at the care home where the patient resided, had been in a sexual relationship with him. The resident later told detectives the relationship began after Worthington "became flirtatious and touched his crotch" during autumn 2024.
When he attempted to kiss her, she reportedly "backed away and said no". However, she later messaged him on Facebook and told him to "look out of your window", at which point he found her outside in the car park of the rehab unit, despite staff being banned from having any contact with service users on social media.
Secret contact and the Dream sculpture incident
The resident reported that he and Worthington "had phone sex almost daily" and, on one occasion, kissed in the laundry room of his accommodation. She told him they "had to wait until he was moved into the community for them to have sex". After he was discharged, they "had sex every time she was on shift, supervising him".
Other employees noted a "significant decline in his behaviour", leading to his return to the care home. He reported that he and Worthington later went on a walk to the Dream sculpture while she was on shift, where she performed oral sex on him in a bush.
She subsequently told him she had "begun dating someone else" and asked him to delete all intimate images of her and their exchanged messages. When they attended a hospital appointment together, he tried to kiss her, but she refused and told him their relationship could not continue. Two days later, he reported the relationship to another staff member. When confronted by a manager, Worthington reportedly "broke down crying" and said: "Yes."
Sentencing and consequences
Worthington, who was suspended from her role following her confession, has no previous convictions. Simon Christie, defending, told the court: "It is a gross abuse of trust over a period of time." He noted that she is responsible for a nine-year-old daughter and has gained employment in a different field since the offences.
Worthington admitted five counts of being a care worker engaging in sexual activity with a mentally disordered person. She was handed a 27-month imprisonment suspended for two years. Sentencing, Judge Simon Medland KC said: "You grossly abused the trust placed in you to look after people who really needed looking after. You behaved sexually towards that young man, who was very ill, and you took sexual advantage of him."
The judge noted the relationship was consensual but said Worthington "used him for sex and gave sex to him, which has had significant consequences for him in terms of his rehabilitation and in terms of his mental stability". He added that she is "inevitably prohibited from ever working in that sector again".
Worthington will be required to complete 180 hours of unpaid work as part of her suspended sentence order. She was also told to sign the sex offenders' register for 10 years.
