A WOMAN allowed her sex offender boyfriend to deliver their baby in a DIY home birth as part of a desperate bid to keep the child hidden.

The couple concealed the newborn because they knew that the father's history of committing serious child sex offences meant the authorities would never let them live under the same roof as any infant.  

At Carlisle Crown Court, the woman – who was living in west Cumbria but cannot be named for legal reasons - pleaded guilty to helping a sex offender flout the terms of his Sex Offender Registration.

Brendan Burke, prosecuting, described how in 2021 the woman and her partner, who has 12 child sex offences on his record, were living together. The woman was aware of his offending history, having already previously had other children removed from her because of her association with him.

“In 2021, she became pregnant with his child,” said Mr Burke.

“They decided to conceal that fact, knowing that if the authorities became aware then there would be another state intervention; effectively she would be asked again whether she prioritised her relationship with him or whether she prioritised her child. So the pregnancy remained concealed.”

That pregnancy continued until it was full-term without anybody else finding out about it, said the prosecutor.

Determined to keep the baby hidden, the couple researched childbirth issues, scouring the internet for relevant informatoin and equipment, including a baby heart monitor, a clamp for the umbilical cord, and scissors to cut it.

When the mother went into labour, the father – a convicted child sex offender – helped to deliver the baby, which was born in the couple’s bath as they effectively staged an improvised water birth.

Mr Burke said: “But police were alerted to rumours that there was a concealed child at their address. They attended on January 17, 2022 and both the defendant and her partner were at the address."

The couple denied that there was a child in the property but police became increasingly suspicious and – alerted by the sound of the baby crying – the officers went into a bedroom, and found the baby.

The couple had attempted to hide it.

When the father was spoken to, he told the police: “We just wanted to be a normal family." The child was immediately removed and found to be healthy. The mother hopes to one day regain custody of the child.

“But the risk was run of very serious harm [to the baby] with her having had a DIY birth, assisted by a man with serious sex offences on his record,” added Mr Burke.

Judith McCullough, defending, said the woman had a troubled and traumatic background, having been bullied at school and having been emotionally abused. Her self-esteem and confidence were low.

“She ended up in violent, abusive, coercive relationships; in her mind, it was better for her to be in dangerous and destructive relationships than to be on her own. That became an enduring pattern in this young woman’s life.”

The defendant’s mental health was fragile and in decline and the father of her child inveigled his way into her life and she felt he was the only person who was supporting her, said the barrister.

“She became more and more reliant on him.” She mistrusted authority but, looking back, she now knows she could have taken a different path. The woman is now trying to rebuild her life. Miss McCullough added that the woman would have sought medical attention at the birth had there been a problem.

Recorder Peter Horgan noted the defendant’s disadvantaged background, and her history of childhood trauma, which probably contributed to her offending.

“But you put your feelings of affection [for the father] before your duty to your child,” said the Recorder. What aggravated the offence, said the judge, was the defendant’s history with the sex offender.

“You well knew what you were doing,” said the judge. But he judged that the best way to protect the public was to allow the defendant to be helped by the Probation Service. He imposed a ten month jail term, suspended for 18 months.

This includes a 1 week 9pm to 8am curfew, 150 hours of unpaid work, and rehabilitation activity days. “There is a prospect of rehabilitation,” added the judge.