This horrific news story was just beyond belief

This baby was left like a non-person. It is just so appalling.

When I first heard the news I thought it was a three week old baby but, realised, when found, she was nearly three and had known nothing else.

Shocking. We've had so many of these cases. However for some reason the Sara Sharif case has really got to me. I shouldn't have read it.

Somehow neglect doesn't seem a strong enough word....
Sheer deliberate cruelty.

As time went on, the mother went to work and took her other children to school and left the child in the drawer, alone for hours on end.

Within two weeks of her admission to hospital, the child was vocalising, seeking adult comfort and crying to make her needs known. She has continued to make progress and has been operated on twice to rectify the cleft palate. However, she still requires further surgery.

www.cps.gov.uk/mersey-cheshire/news/mother-jailed-hiding-her-child-drawer-three-years

I was truly shocked when I saw this on the news, I can't imagine the trauma suffered by the social worker and police who found the child and saw the extent of the cruel neglect. Somehow neglect doesn't seem a strong enough word....

FriedGreenTomatoes2

Allira could it have been because she had a cleft palate? ‘Different’ meaning her mother excluded her because of her deformity.

Gross neglect and cruelty, I wept.
Absolutely no excuse for this appalling behaviour towards this innocent baby.

Was she even registered as having been born ?
No, she can't have been.

It's a wonder she survived
It is! In those conditions and surviving on such an extremely limited diet. Let's hope, having survived that horrendous start, she can make progress and live a more normal life in the future.

Whatca terrible shock for the social worker who found her.

FriedGreenTomatoes2

Could she maybe (hopefully) have little to no memory of this time in her life? One can only hope so.

She is five now apparently, with foster parents and has learnt to walk, talk and smile, the last bit devastated me. Thankfully most people remember little of their life before the age of four.

Loving support not living!

The more I think about the worse it seems. This poor wee girl had never seen the light of day apparently. So much developmental damage re physical and mental abilities. It's nice that her current foster parents want to adopt her. She really deserves to have dedicated and living support from people who really want her. Just wish we could all send her presents or do something to convey our good wishes.

She told officers the child was "not part of the family".

Whatever that means.

Truly shocking. Let's hope she can now flourish over time

She couldn't have been registered. I guess it's one of those where we will never know the full story. It was obviously a concealed pregnancy & birth, so there was something going on before the cleft palate.
It's a wonder she survived, unimaginable to deprive a baby like that.

Allira

Jeanathome

How many more out there? And how many more neighbours not reporting screaming children ( the Sara case)

I've never heard anything like this before.
It is so difficult even to think about it.

The other children in the family were living a normal life, going to school etc.
Just why?

Children’s memories tend to start really abiut age 7, pre age three, we are unlikely to have memories. What this little girl will have is stunted development in all areas I imagine. Reading about her ‘ life’ is heartbreaking. She must have learned that crying brought no comfort. So damaging to her development - unimaginable to understand how anyone could do this.
Was she even registered as having been born ? If no one knew about her, how could she be protected

Allira could it have been because she had a cleft palate? ‘Different’ meaning her mother excluded her because of her deformity.

Could she maybe (hopefully) have little to no memory of this time in her life? One can only hope so.

Jeanathome

How many more out there? And how many more neighbours not reporting screaming children ( the Sara case)

I've never heard anything like this before.
It is so difficult even to think about it.

The other children in the family were living a normal life, going to school etc.
Just why?

How many more out there? And how many more neighbours not reporting screaming children ( the Sara case)

It’s so horrific it doesn’t seem real. How on earth will the poor little mite recover from such brutal treatment?

so so unbelievably ... can't find the words.

Just dreadful, isn't it.
That poor child, thank goodness she was rescued.

Heartbreaking. Beyond belief. Cruelty of the most wicked kind.

I find the story to be horrific and presume the child was hidden due to her cleft palate
the lack of nutrition will have badly affected her development
but one question is how did the woman hide her pregnancy from her partner?

More lessons to be learned, I expect.

Allira we saw the same report it is heart breaking , I do find it heard to understand how no one in the family never heard anything or were a tiny bit suspicious that something was going on , thank goodness for the visitor . It will take me a long time to stop thinking about the poor little girl and I hope the mother has a hard time of it in prison