WARNING DISTRESSING CONTENT: A review will take place looking at the missed opportunities to save baby Preston Davey from the adoptive parents who used him as a ‘plaything’
Preston Davey was routinely abused and had indecent images taken of him prior to his death (Image: Enterprise News and Pictures)
Preston Davey was taken to hospital three times and seen by a number of professionals just weeks before he was murdered by his “pure evil” adoptive parents, it emerged during the trial.
These missed opportunities are now set to be examined as officials scrutinise how officials treated the 13-month-old who endured a litany of abuse from his adopted parents.
Yesterday, textiles teacher Jamie Varley, 37, was found guilty of sexual abuse and murder, while his partner, financial sales manager John McGowan-Fazakerley, 32, was found guilty of allowing the death of a child, child cruelty, and sexual assault.
Varley initially tried to cover up his actions by claiming he left Preston in the bath for a short time and returned to find him submerged. However, a postmortem exposed as a malicious lie. Preston’s hair was dry, and he hadn’t swallowed any water; his actual cause of death was “acute upper airways obstruction by an object or objects inserted into his mouth.”
Preston spent just four months in the couple’s care. In that brief window, he was taken to hospital on three occasions with injuries, including a broken elbow and suffered 40 traumatic injuries. Despite social workers visiting the home twice, and Lancashire Police being deployed once, the abuse went undetected.
An independent Child Safeguarding Practice Review, which was paused during criminal proceedings, will now restart to examine how authorities failed to protect the vulnerable child from an adoptive father who used him like a “plaything.”
Preston was born four weeks premature, weighing 5lb 7oz. His mother, convicted killer Sarah Davey, was serving time in the mother and baby unit at HMP Styal, and he was taken into emergency care by Oldham Council at just five days old.
For the first nine months of his life, Preston was cared by foster parents Sandra and Paul Cooper. Under their care, he was a “thriving| baby whose only medical issue was a minor acid reflux problem.
It was at the Cooper’s home that Varley and McGowan-Fazakerley first met Preston, during the mandatory familiarisation process before formally adopting him. Sandra recalled feeling immediately uneasy, noting the two men seemed to have no idea how to take care of an infant, forcing her to teach them basic parenting tasks.
Missed chances to save Preston
1. On April 1 2023, Preston was officially placed with Varley and McGowan-Fazakerley. Shortly after the handover, Sandra rang social services with a sinister “gut feeling” that something was wrong. She said attempted to schedule a visit with Preston, to check on the baby she’d raised, but her requests were repeatedly rebuffed by the couple.
Early April – Varley calls Preston ‘dead meat’
2. Within days of taking Preston home, Varley sent a chilling text message to his sister after a difficult night, writing: “He’s dead meat today. Didn’t sleep last night after 11.30. Up every, one and a half hours.”
May 15 – Sinister 999 call
3. McGowan-Fazakerley dialled 999 but abruptly hung up. The emergency operator recorded hearing a voice in the background saying: “Put it down…”
When the operator called back, the couple claimed they had meant to call non-emergency line 111 to report that Preston having “breathing problems”. A health visitor made a scheduled visit to the house the following day, but reported the baby as appearing well.
May 25 – First hospital visit
4. Preston was rushed to Blackpool Victoria Hospital after becoming floppy and unresponsive. Varley claimed he had suffered a nose bleed, a seizure and breathing difficulties. But paediatric sister Zoe Hellowell and Nurse Holly Edwards noticed highly suspicious bruising on Preston’s head and logged “unexplained injuries, inconsistent with a version of events given…”
Hospital safeguarding teams, social services and Lancashire Police were notified. However, Varley smoothed-talked authorities, claiming that his adopted son had simply bumped his head as he learned to crawl. The explanation was accepted, and no further action was taken.
June 30 – Second hospital visit
5. The couple returned to the hospital, presenting Preston with a rash, diarrhoea, vomiting. high temperature, and fresh bruises on his head. To explain it, the couple showed medics a video of Preston pulling a toy onto his head whilst playing. In reality, the video had been filmed 12 days and could not have caused the fresh injuries, something that was only discovered later.
During the visit, Varley brazenly said to hospital staff: “You lot are going to think we have been abusing him or something.”
July 3 – Social worker visit
6. Social worker Amy Shepherdson visited the home on July 3. She noted the baby looked “a little pale” and “not himself” but documented that she believed this is due to a recent illness he’d had.
July 6 –Third hospital visit
7. Just three days later, Preston was brought back to the hospital with a broken elbow. Varley gave conflicting and inconsistent explanations about how the injury had occurred to hospital staff, eventually settling on a claim that it had occurred while he put his adoptive son in his cot.
The same day Shepherdson, who had been in contact with the hospital, texted Varley to say: “Just to reassure you they said they had absolutely no concerns. U absolutely did the right thing.”
July 7 –An independent review by social services
8. Independent reviewer Helen Magee conducted a scheduled visit on behalf of Oldham Council. Aware of the frequent hospital admissions, she wrote a report directly addressing the infant: “Preston, I did watch your responses to your daddies quite carefully as I am aware that you have had a few hospital admissions of late and this made me ponder a little as to whether there was a problem that I couldn’t see.
“I decided there wasn’t an issue…”
Mid-July – a terrifying confession to coworker
9. Varley, who had taken a year of adoption leave, visited the school where he worked with Preston’s arm visibly in a plaster cast. Whilst there he admitted to his colleague, Janet Gee, that he was having “dark thoughts” about murdering the baby by suffocating or drowning him. Because Varley claimed he had confessed this to his social worker, Gee did not take any further action.
10. On July 13, Varley’s headteacher conducted a welfare check at the couple’s home after hearing that he was struggling mentally, but left without any concerns.
July 27 – the tragic end
Varley rushed the child to hospital a final time, claiming the baby had drowned in the bath, and Preston died in hospital, aged just 13 months.
Following the guilty verdicts, a spokesperson for Adoption Now said: “This was a deeply upsetting case, and our thoughts are with everyone affected by these truly awful crimes. Adoption Now follows a strict and rigorous process in line with all relevant legislation and guidance in the assessment and approval of adopters. An independent Child Safeguarding Practice Review is being completed.”
Oldham Council added: “The death of any child is a tragedy, but this is a particularly heart-wrenching and disturbing case. We are thankful that the perpetrators of the sickening murder and abuse of an innocent child have today been convicted for their crimes.
“An independent Child Safeguarding Practice Review is already under way, which will examine the handling of Preston’s safeguarding.
“Our thoughts remain with Preston’s family, loved ones, and the many people affected by this case.”
