Mother denies leaving her children home alone

Prosecutor Stephen Uttley told a jury at Bradford Crown Court the girl and boy, aged 10 and 15, respectively, had effectively been left to fend for themselves.

About two hours after the mother left, however, police officers, acting on information from a concerned relative, visited the house.

The jury heard evidence from the officers, one of whom described the house as being dishevelled and dirty.

They claimed only to have seen a few tins of vegetables and breakfast cereal in the house, but accepted that they had not looked in the fridge, freezer or cellar.

The woman, who denies two charges of wilfully abandoning her children in a manner likely to cause them unnecessary suffering or injury to health, cannot be named to protect the identities of her children.

She said while she was away she had tried to contact the children but got no reply and thought they may have pulled the telephone cable out of the wall. She said a male friend had offered to sleep at the house and look after the children while she was away and her son had contact numbers for her in case of emergencies.

She told police the house was "chock-a-block'' with food before she left.

The jury heard efforts to contact the male friend had failed.

The trial continues.