A FAMILY court judge has found that a 13-month-old from Barrow was sexually assaulted by her father shortly before her sudden death.

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Failure at every step of the way in Barrow baby death inquiry

Harrowing details of Poppi's death


Poppi Iris Worthington Poppi Iris Worthington died suddenly aged just 13 months in December 2012. The tot had been living at the home she shared with her parents and siblings in the town until her unexpected death just days before Christmas three years ago.

A redacted version of the judgment into the circumstances of Poppi’s death - authored by high court judge Mr Justice Peter Jackson in March last year - details systemic and repeated failings in the way her death was investigated by both Cumbria Constabulary and Cumbria County Council.

The disturbing report states the baby was rushed to Furness General Hospital by paramedics at around 6am on December 12, 2012, but was pronounced dead shortly after 7am.

Mr Justice Jackson's judgment states she was found to 'have an earlier fracture of her right lower leg and suspected acute injuries in the region of the anus'.

The document goes on to lay bare catastrophic inadequacies in the subsequent investigation by police officers which led to the suspension of an officer by Cumbria Constabulary.

The force is said to have failed to preserve evidence which may have shed light on the circumstances surrounding Poppi’s death.

Poppi’s father, Paul Worthington, 47, and a 31-year-old woman were arrested in connection with the death but both were released from their bail conditions in March this year.

The Crown Prosecution Service has since confirmed no-one will face criminal charges in relation to the death of Poppi.

High Court family court judge Mr Justice Jackson gave his fact-finding judgment on the circumstances of the death at Liverpool Crown Court this morning. 

He ruled that - on the balance of probabilities - Mr Worthington "perpetrated a penetrative ... assault on Poppi".

In his full judgment, he said: "In conclusion, stepping back and reviewing the evidence as a whole, I arrive at the same view as I expressed ... of the previous judgment. 

"Shorn to its essentials, the situation is one in which a healthy child with no medical condition or illness was put to bed by her mother one evening and brought downstairs eight hours later by her father in a lifeless state and with troubling injuries, most obviously significant bleeding... 

"Careful assessment of the meticulous pathological and paediatric evidence has clearly established that the injuries were the result of trauma from outside the body. 

"My finding (in the previous judgment) was that the father perpetrated a penetrative ... assault on Poppi ... That remains my conclusion."

The mother wept in court as Mr Justice Jackson gave a summary of his fresh judgment. Mr Worthington did not attend the hearing.

Poppi Worthington case: A timeline

December 2012 - Poppi Worthington dies suddenly aged 13 months after she collapses at her home in Barrow. 

February 2013 - Poppi is buried after the coroner releases her body. 

June 2013 - A full post-mortem report indicates the cause of death is unascertained.

August 2013 - Poppi's parents are arrested and formally interviewed for the first time. Poppi's father, Paul Worthington, is questioned on suspicion of sexually assaulting his daughter - an allegation he denies. 

March 2014 - Fact-finding judgment on the circumstances of Poppi's death is delivered in private as part of family court proceedings involving other children in the family. Its publication is delayed in case it prejudices any criminal trial. :: 

October 2014 - HM Coroner for South Cumbria, Ian Smith, holds an inquest at Barrow Town Hall and takes just seven minutes to declare her death as unexplained after stating he was satisfied to rely on the findings of the private fact-finding judgment. The case is not listed in Poppi's name but as ''a child aged 13 months''.

January 2015 - Senior Coroner for Cumbria, David Roberts, confirms he will ask for a fresh inquest in a written reply to lawyers representing various media organisations who argued the October hearing was insufficient and therefore unlawful.

March 2015 - Cumbria Police announce no charges will be brought against anyone over Poppi's death after they had previously passed a file to the Crown Prosecution Service for its consideration.

April 2015 - Paul Worthington is granted a review of the March 2014 medical evidence, which further delays publication of the original fact-finding judgment.

July 2015 - High Court judges order a fresh inquest into the youngster's death after the first hearing was deemed ''irregular''.  

November 2015 - A hearing reviewing the medical evidence from the March 2014 court proceedings gets under way in Liverpool. Ahead of the hearing, Mr Justice Peter Jackson releases parts of his original fact-finding judgment which reveal that Cumbria Police did not conduct any "real" investigation into Poppi's death for nine months despite a senior pathologist raising concerns the girl's injuries were caused by "a penetrative sexual assault". 

January 18 2016 - Mr Justice Peter Jackson set to announce his findings from the review hearing. The original 2014 judgment is also expected to be published in full.