Childminder jailed for 12 years after 'snapping' and shaking baby to death

• ITV Granada Reports correspondent Ann O'Connor was in court for the sentencing

A childminder who shook a baby boy to death "in frustration" at the fact he was crying after falling from a chair then tried to blame his mother for his death has been jailed.

Karen Foster, 62, left nine-month-old Harlow Collinge with unsurvivable brain injuries after dropped off at her home in Hapton, Lancashire, by mum Gemma Collinge.

Just two hours later, Preston Crown Court heard the childminder - who had been breaking Ofsted rules to make more money from parents - rang emergency services to say Harlow had stopped breathing.

The youngster was rushed away by ambulance to Royal Blackburn Hospital, where Foster hugged his mother and claimed he had begun choking and she had slapped him on the back.

Foster claimed she had checked his mouth and slapped him in an attempt to dislodge anything stuck.

She then later tried to blame Ms Collinge for the injuries.

Harlow, who was injured on 1 March 2022, died four days later in his parents’ arms having suffered massive brain injuries.

The court heard Foster, despite claiming benefits for ill health, was a registered childminder who had been breaking Ofsted rules on the numbers and ages of children she should be caring for, to make more money from parents.

Harlow’s mother, father Allen Frangleton, older siblings and wider family, sat in the public gallery, weeping as Foster was sentenced to 12 years and seven months.

In a victim impact statement Ms Collinge said: “How do I explain losing my son in such horrific circumstances? Harlow was enjoying his little life. He was a happy smiling baby.”

She also spoke of the “guilt” she felt, having made arrangements to move him to a nursery six weeks after first using Foster as a childminder, due to her own concerns about the number of children being looked after.

“All the red flags I missed,” she continued before recalling Foster trying to comfort her at the hospital, claiming Harlow had choked on pasta.

She added: “She even put her arms around me. I can’t think of anything more evil. It is despicable. I blame myself every day for my son’s death. This monster, Karen Foster, deserves nothing. I hope her actions haunt her.”

Foster was charged with Harlow's murder, which she denied, following a 15 month investigation.

As she appeared in the dock to stand trial, Foster changed her plea, pleading guilty to manslaughter, admitting shaking Harlow in frustration.

Her basis of plea was that “forceful shaking” of Harlow caused his death after he had toppled over out of his high chair, began crying and she shook him in frustration, the court heard.

A judge said her claim to be remorseful was difficult to reconcile, as she only admitted what actually happened when her trial began.

Sentencing her Mr Justice Barry Cotter described Harlow as a “happy, healthy, much-loved” boy.

But he said that Foster, despite ill health and pain in her hip, chose to carry on looking after more children than she should have under Ofsted rules, and this contributed to her “loss of temper”.

He said: “You should have been a safe pair of hands to which Gemma Collinge could ensure her precious child.

“I have no doubt you snapped on the 1 March 2022, in part due to the fact that you were not coping with the demands of caring for four children.

"You lost your temper and he was on the receiving end.

“You shook an (almost) 10-month-old child so violently to cause devastating injuries. His death was caused in the course of an assault.”

Defending, Michelle Colbourne KC said: "During lockdown, Foster struggled to make a living, her health was suffering and she was struggling to achieve the living standard she was used to.

"That is one reason she often said yes to caring for more children. She was looking after children of emergency workers.

"She feared her failing health meant she would not be able to continue working for much longer."