The young boy was found clutching his father Kenneth’s legs wearing his Pudsey pyjamas (Picture: Facebook)
The sister of two-year-old Bronson Battersby who starved to death next to his lifeless dad said she does not blame social services.
Melanie Battersby, 37, said she believed ‘social services and the police did what they could within the powers they had’ after her young brother’s body was found on January 9.
He died of starvation and dehydration due to being unable to reach his snacks from the fridge.
The young boy was found clutching his father Kenneth’s legs wearing his Pudsey pyjamas two weeks after they were last seen alive on Boxing Day.
A social worker raised the alarm when no one answered the door during a routine visit to the house in Skegness, Lincolnshire, on January 2 – but their bodies were not found for another week.
Lincolnshire Police referred itself to the watchdog over the case, while the council has also launched a ‘rapid review’ to investigate why the toddler was not found sooner.
Kenneth, 60, who looked after Bronson full time, was in poor health and had suffered a heart attack just a few months before his death.
Melanie told the BBC: ‘I don’t place any blame at all on them. I believe that social services and the police did what they could within the powers that they had and the information they were given.
Kenneth and Bronson were found dead together on January 9, some two weeks after they were last seen alive (Picture: Facebook / Sarah Louise Piesse)
‘I’m glad that an inquiry is going to take place into whether there were any failings, missed opportunities. I’m really glad that is going to take place.’
She revealed she last saw her young brother during a family trip to Butlins, and described him as a ‘beautiful, sweet-natured little boy’.
‘Every time I saw him he was happy, he was smiling, he learned to walk, he was learning tp speak,’ she said.
‘We’re devastated as a whole family.’
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web
browser that
supports HTML5
video
The toddler died from dehydration and starvation at his home in Skegness, Lincolnshire (Picture: Facebook/Sarah Louise Piesse)
Speaking about her dad Kenneth, Melanie said he ‘really loved his children’.
‘He tried his best for that little boy until his last breath,’ she said.
It is believed Kenneth died a week before the bodies were found, and Bronson survived for two to three days after him.
‘I was told they were both found looking very peaceful. That is the only consolation I can take, that my little brother snuggled up to my dad.’
A neighbour raised the alarm to the NSPCC after she could hear a toddler ‘crying all night’ but no one got back to her, The Mirror reports.
A rapid review has been launched into the circumstances surrounding Bronson’s death (Picture: Facebook / Sarah Louise Piesse)
Amanda Tovey said: ‘It was mainly at night when he started having a go at the poor lad. I could hear it all from my flat above but I never felt I was in a position to confront him.
‘I have no kids myself so cannot tell someone else how to parent a child. I was concerned and shortly before Christmas contacted the NSPCC because I could hear the boy crying all night. I left a message but they never got back to me.
‘I saw the two body bags coming out, it was awful. Everyone here feels very emotional and saddened by what happened.’
Lincolnshire County Council said the social worker responsible for checking on Kenny and Bronson has not been suspended, however it’s thought they have taken time off voluntarily.
Timeline of events: Bronson Battersby’s death
Boxing Day: Bronson and Kenneth are seen alive for the last time by a neighbour who checks in on them – and Bronson waves from inside the house.
December 27: Kenneth messaged a neighbour to say: ‘Thanks so much for caring, it means the world to me and Bronson.’ He also arranges a visit with social services for January 2.
December 29: The earliest date Kenneth could have died.
January 2: A social worker calls in but there is no answer. She contacts police and visits other properties nearby.
January 4: The social worker calls again but there is still no response. She contacts the police again.
January 9: The social worker contacts the landlord to get a key to enter the home herself. Kenneth and Bronson are found dead inside the property.
January 16: The family learn the initial post-mortem results, which found Bronson died of dehydration and starvation, while Kenneth died of a heart attack.
Bronson’s mum Sarah Piesse said she is now haunted by the thought of her son being alone in the dark for days on end, desperately trying to find food and water.
Bronson’s mum Sarah Piesse said she is now haunted by the thought of her son being alone in the dark for days on end, desperately trying to find food and water.
‘Kenny moved all the snacks higher up so he couldn’t get to them without asking,’ the 43-year-old said
‘Now all I can think of in my head is him, starving, reaching up and trying to get them. I can’t bear it.
‘If only Bronson was a little bit taller, then he would have survived,’ she told The Sun. ‘The fridge would have been packed with Christmas leftovers.’
Despite not seeing her son for weeks, Sarah trusted Bronson’s dad and knew social services would be there to help as they were making routine weekly visits due to Kenny’s poor health.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].
For more stories like this, check our news page.
‘I don’t place any blame at all on them.’