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Daily Record
Daily Record
National
Cheryl McEvoy & Gemma Ryder

Inquiry into death of starved Glasgow toddler found in hellish flat given start date

An inquiry into the horrific death of a toddler starved to death by her parents will take place in July.

Lauren Wade endured months of neglect at the hands of her biological mother Margaret Wade and her partner Marie Sweeney.

The two-year-old was found emaciated and covered in lice in her parent's filthy flat in Glasgow's Sighthill flat in 2015.

She was rushed to hospital – but around 30 minutes later was pronounced dead.

That Fatal Incident Inquiry at Glasgow Sheriff Court is due to start on Monday, July 11, is expected to last more than a month, and will hear from multiple witnesses, Glasgow Live reports.

Mother of Lauren, Margaret Wade. (PA)

A toxicology report after her death seven years ago found alcohol and diazepam in Lauren's body.

She was so malnourished her shoulders and backbone were visible through her skin, the palms of her hands and feet were black and her baby teeth decaying.

Wade and Sweeney were convicted of wilfully ill-treating the little girl and jailed for six years in 2019.

Marie Sweeney neglected two-year-old Lauren Wade, who died from malnutrition in March 2015. (PA)

Wade, who was released on parole in March, has already said she does not want to appear at the hearing, due to start on Monday, July 11.

Sheriff Principal Craig Turnbull will preside over the Fatal Accident Inquiry into the case that shocked the city.

The neglect of the toddler and two other children led to a Significant Case Review looking at how the health and social care agencies dealt with Lauren and her parents.

This later found that Wade and Sweeney were uniquely cruel and "devious" and avoided what they saw as "interference" from outside agencies such as health visitors and social workers.

It also highlighted a lack of "professional curiosity" from those charged with protecting the three year old.

The review also found that a large number of professionals dealing with the family did not push hard enough to see evidence of improvement in the family's circumstances after concerns were raised.

A police officer who attended the scene on the day Lauren died described the house as "uninhabitable" with rubbish piled so high in the kitchen he couldn't get in.

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