ALCOHOL ABUSE: Grandmother must have liver test before being allowed to care for her grandson

Concerns: The woman said she once drank a bottle of wine a day

A grandmother has been ordered to have a liver test before being allowed to care for grandson. The pensioner's alcohol consumption might affect her capacity to look after the toddler, who is currently in temporary foster care, a judge has ruled. Judge Clifford Bellamy said it was clear the pensioner, who is in her sixties and a former teacher - is able to meet her grandson's day-to-day physical and emotional needs. But he said there was a risk that her "alcohol consumption" might affect her "capacity" to look after the little boy.

And he said he needed to be satisfied by "appropriate tests and expert opinion" that she was no longer misusing alcohol before allowing the youngster to move in. He said the woman would have to undergo a liver function test. Judge Bellamy had concluded that the little boy could not be cared for by his mother or father - who both had histories of mental health issues. The judge said the options were allowing the youngster to live with the grandmother or placing him for adoption. Details of the case have emerged in a written ruling by Judge Bellamy following a family court hearing in Leicester. He said the little boy could not be identified. But he said the local authority which had asked for rulings relating to the youngster's future was Leicestershire County Council.

 Care: The rulings relating to the boy's future were requested by Leicestershire County Council



The woman had told how six years ago, when suffering from depression, she had drunk a bottle of wine a day for a period of around three to four months, according to Judge Bellamy.
And she had said that earlier this year she had been drinking "around one-and-a-half bottles of wine per week". She said she had "reduced her consumption" after a blood test - and had insisted that she was no longer "abusing" alcohol. Judge Bellamy said the "alcohol issue" was a "deal-breaker".

"I need to be satisfied by appropriate tests and expert opinion that (the grandmother) is not misusing alcohol," added the judge. "If evidence can be made available to satisfy me on that issue, then I conclude that (the little boy's) welfare interests would be best served by placement with (his grandmother) under a special guardianship order. "If such additional evidence gives rise to a finding that on the balance of probability (the grandmother) is misusing alcohol then I am satisfied that placement of (the little boy) in her care would not be appropriate. "In those circumstances I would unhesitatingly conclude that (the youngster's) welfare needs are such that nothing but adoption would do." The case is due to return to court in the near future.