‘No parent should have to spend every penny they have to protect their child from a paedophile’
A fundraiser has been launched to support a mother who paid £30,000 in legal fees to protect her child from her sex offender ex-husband. The convicted paedophile was recently barred from contacting his daughter after a Cardiff family court judge found he poses an "extremely high risk of sexual and emotional harm" — but the case has raised questions over families having to wage costly legal battles to protect a child from a paedophile parent.
In a social media post MP Harriet Harman shared a proposal to take the burden off families, writing: "When new Sentencing Bill comes to Commons, I’ll propose amendment for sentencing judge to suspend parental rights when sentencing child sex offenders. I hope [the UK Government] will agree to put this in law." The former deputy Labour leader told WalesOnline that protecting the children of a known offender "should not be the task of the mother of his children".
Activist Sammy Woodhouse, who was a victim in the Rotherham child sexual abuse scandal, said in a social media post: "A mother in Wales has had to pay thousands in legal costs to strip paedophile of contact to his daughter. Another mother spending thousands to protect her child. All must be stripped of parental rights and contact."
READ NEXT: Mum loses custody of six-year-old daughter after 'bleak' neglect
READ NEXT: Couple with severe learning difficulties devastated to lose custody of their baby
The mother, who is using the pseudonym Bethan, was terrified the father could access her child when he leaves prison. She not only spent £30,000 in legal fees but also put her career on hold so she could focus on the case, resulting in tens of thousands of pounds in lost earnings. The fundraising page, which is targeting £30,000 in donations to support her, reads: "No parent should have to spend every penny they have to protect their child from a paedophile. This page has been set up on behalf of Bethan (not her real name) because people, having read her story in the news, have kindly expressed an interest in contributing to her legal costs. If donations were to exceed the amount spent on the court case, then any additional money would be set aside for her daughter's future."
Bethan told WalesOnline the change proposed by Mrs Harman would "protect thousands of innocent children from predictable and preventable harm". She pointed out many families would not have "the time or means" to go to family court to safeguard their child. Her father added: "I think the public expectation was that a law to strip parental responsibility from child sex offenders would already be in place. Now that the case has gone public, people are very surprised to learn it isn't in place and they are realising how wrong that is. To have someone as senior as Harriet Harman immediately respond and try to put an amendment through the House of Commons is beyond our wildest dreams."
The UK Government has already proposed to automatically suspend parental rights from parents who are convicted of killing their partner. The reform is known as Jade's Law, after Jade Ward from Flintshire who was murdered by her estranged husband, who then continuously contacted her family from prison for updates on their children. The Ministry of Justice told WalesOnline there are "at present no plans to extend this proposed reform to other circumstances" but it is "carefully reviewing the approach to parental access to make sure all children are kept safe”.
Bethan, who claims to have been "repeatedly raped" by her ex-husband, applied for a court order to strip him of parental responsibility after he was jailed for sexual offending. His convictions, which cannot be reported for legal reasons, did not involve his ex-wife or daughter.
Judge Mererid Edwards said the concern over the father's behaviour "extends beyond his criminal convictions". The judge noted he had admitted watching "incestuous pornography" while the child was in his care, adding: "There are also SMS messages between [the father] and a vulnerable individual which evidence him building a relationship, gaining trust, and then discussing matters of a sexual nature." Judge Edwards described this as "the sort of manipulative and grooming behaviour often used by abusers".
The judge noted that messages sent by the father "appear to acknowledge having had sexual intercourse" with Bethan while she was asleep. "As a bare minimum the messages indicate a concerning lack of understanding in relation to consent and sexual boundaries," said Judge Edwards.
Judge Edwards ordered that the girl live with her mother until the age of 18 and that the father be barred from contacting her until that age. The judge said he posed an "extremely high risk" and that the mother "needs to be free" from any fear that he could locate them in the future.
After the judgment the child's maternal grandmother told WalesOnline that Bethan had put in hundreds of hours reading about family law. The time she spent reading legal texts meant that when the father was given an exemption to his sexual harm prevention order earlier this year, she knew this would allow him to apply for access to the child. "It was a very favourable outcome but my daughter made her own luck," said the grandmother. "Many families won't have a chance because, first of all, will they be able to afford the legal fees? Will they understand all the legal terminology?"
"This has been the worst time in our lives," she added. "Imagine any mother trying to sleep easy knowing a paedophile father could request access to their child. It's horrific. People need to know they can't wait until the father comes out of prison to protect their child because the chance is he could then be given access."
Mrs Harman, MP for Camberwell and Peckham, told WalesOnline her proposed amendment would ensure criminal courts can suspend parental rights of men who are "a danger to all children, including their own". She said: "Where a court has judged that a man is a danger to children and has made an order to protect other children — like putting him on the sex offenders register — they should take steps to protect his own children too. The protection of the children of a known offender should not be the task of the mother of his children, meaning that she has to go to the family court which is a difficult, expensive and stressful process. The criminal court could do it. They could call for reports from CAFCASS (Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service) and decide what’s in the 'best interests of the child'. They have all the facts in front of them."
The Ministry of Justice says it is reviewing the "presumption of parental involvement" in cases where a child could be put at risk. The department added that any action taken must be "rooted in solid evidence". You can donate to the fundraiser for Bethan here and you can read our full court report on the case here.
WalesOnline covered this case under a new transparency scheme that allows media to report on family court cases. The parties involved are not identified in our coverage. If you are aware of an upcoming Cardiff family court case that you believe we should cover, you can contact us at [email protected].

source