A mother who left her toddler daughter at home to go and party for six days while the tot starved to death had left her unattended on 11 previous occasions.
Verphy Kudi abandoned 14-month-old Asiah on her 18th birthday in December 2019 for six days of partying in London, Coventry and Solihull, in the West Midlands.
Last month, she pleaded guilty to manslaughter at Lewes Crown Court. She will be sentenced next month. Kudi and her daughter were living in supported housing for young families in Islingword Road, Brighton, and a safeguarding practice review has been commissioned.
The Times has reported today on details revealed at an earlier court hearing, where prosecutor Sally Howes said that Kudi had first left Asiah alone in mid-October and had been spoken to.
But she went on to leave the tot alone 11 more times, culminating in the six days she was abandoned after Kudi’s 18th birthday on Wednesday 4 December.
YMCA Downslink, which has been running the supported housing at Gochers Court since September 2019, said that it had not been aware of these instances at the time.
It said that they had come to light after police examined CCTV following Asiah’s death.
It also said that social services had been informed of the safeguarding incident in mid-October. Brighton and Hove City Council last month said Asiah that did not have a social worker and was not on a child protection plan when she died.
In a statement, YMCA Downslink said: “This tragedy has shocked us all. Our staff, particularly those who work at Gochers Court, have been and continue to be deeply affected by it.
“Verphy Kudi and her daughter Asiah had been living at Gochers Court, independent living flats for nine weeks when Asiah died.
“We have not been informed about the 11 occasions that the prosecution referred to and staff were not aware. The flats at Gochers Court are self-contained and are rented on a private tenancy basis.
“Families living at these flats live independently and are free to come and go without being monitored. Staff are available during the day to offer housing-related support and one to two hours of planned key-work sessions each week.
“CCTV footage is not used for live monitoring and so is not used to monitor the live activities/actions of residents. It is there to provide security and as a deterrent to anti-social behaviour.
“It is also available to provide retrospective information and, as such, all CCTV footage was handed over to the police to aid the criminal investigation. It was the police investigation after Asiah’s death which has brought these possible further instances to light.
“The safeguarding incident which we were aware of was reported to social services. This tragic death is still being investigated with the safeguarding practice review which we are contributing to fully and we will not be making any further comments until we have the outcome of that review.
“Our sympathies and thoughts are with the family and everyone affected by this tragic event.”
