Pair sentenced for Northwich child neglect offences

A pair from Northwich have been sentenced for neglecting a child in their care.

Ella Jones and Kevin Fields appeared at Chester Crown Court on Tuesday 22 July for sentencing after they both pleaded guilty to causing the ill treatment/neglect to a child at an earlier hearing.

Fields, 29, of Mill Street in Crewe, was sentenced to two years imprisonment. Whereas 28-year-old Jones, of Hesketh Drive in Northwich, was sentenced to two years imprisonment, suspended for two years.

The court heard that on the 27 May 2025, Cheshire Police officers were contacted by a paediatrician who raised concerns over a 12-week-old baby that had been brought into Leighton Hospital that evening.

The doctor explained to officers that the baby, who was in the care of Fields and Jones at the time, had been brought into the Accident and Emergency Department as they had become unresponsive.

It was observed by staff that the pair appeared to be under the influence of drugs and did not appear to be particularly concerned over the state of the infant. They went on to tell staff that the baby had suffered a similar episode three days prior, but they did not attend hospital as the baby had later come round.

Further concerns were raised when the baby had been admitted on to a ward, with both Fields and Jones immediately leaving the hospital, telling nurses they would “probably be asleep” if anyone tried to contact them in the event of an emergency.

A toxicology test would later result in doctors finding traces cocaine in the infant’s system, the likely cause of how the baby came to be unresponsive prior to admission. Doctors believed the drug had somehow been ingested and raised concerns that the pair had been taking the drug in the presence of the infant.

Based on this information, Fields and Jones were arrested on 3 June and taken into custody.

During interview, they would both admit to taking cocaine in the presence of the baby and that the infant had suffered a medical episode just days prior to admission to Leighton Hospital.

They could not explain how the cocaine came to be in the baby’s system, however, a review of Fields’ phone found that, a day prior to the baby's second collapse, he had arranged for a quantity of cocaine to be delivered.

They would both plead guilty to the offences at the first opportunity.

Alongside Jones' suspended sentence, she was also handed 25 rehabilitation activity days, a 12-month mental health treatment requirement order, and 150 unpaid work hours.

Following their sentencing, Sergeant Ann Muldowney said:

“Class A drugs like cocaine can have seriously damaging health effects in adults, so it is a miracle that Fields and Jones’ utterly deplorable and reckless actions didn’t result in a fatality when a child came to ingest the substance.

“These two squandered the great responsibility that comes with looking after a child, taking no consideration for the needs of someone who has been in the world for only three months and cannot yet look after themselves and needs round-the-clock care and attention.

“Our officers treat reports of this nature with the utmost seriousness and will thoroughly investigate any allegations made. I would strongly urge anyone who has any concerns in relation to child neglect or abuse to please contact Cheshire Police via the website, or on 101.”

Alternatively, information can be passed on anonymously to police via Crimestoppers, who can be contacted on 0800 555 111.