A GRANDMOTHER has admitted that not contacting the authorities over a toddler's injuries is her 'biggest regret'.

Christine Grantham is the grandmother of Lauren O’Neill - the mother of Harry House. Miss O'Neill's former partner Joseph Eke, 22, is standing trial at Winchester Crown Court charged with killing the two-year-old at the couple's Broadmayne home on May 26 last year.

The court was told that on the afternoon of March 27 2016, Harry was brought to Poole Accident and Emergency by ambulance.

Dr Harry Adlington, the duty consultant that day, examined Harry and found there to be a 6cm wound on the right side of his face. 

Dr Adlington told the court that it was a “significant” cut that required surgery the following day. He added that a much less significant wound was discovered above his collar bone.

Paramedics and Dr Adlington were told by Miss O’Neill that Harry had obtained the cut after falling on a plate at home.

Dr Adlington said the history of the incident could be consistent to Harry’s injury.

But surgeon Ian Downing disagreed.

Speaking in the witness box Mr Downing said: “Small lacerations are very common but lacerations like Harry’s are extremely uncommon.
“I cannot understand the mechanism that the plate broke in such a way to cause this injury.

“I’m not convinced by the history.”

He told the court that “for a small boy, who is relatively low to the ground”, he could not understand how it could lead to this injury.

Mrs Grantham told the court that two weeks after the incident with the plate, Harry told her it was Eke who was responsible for the laceration.

When he was visiting for the weekend she said she found Harry in her bedroom looking in to the wardrobe mirrors. 

She said: “He seemed shocked to be looking into the mirror.

“He said ‘Nana, my face all broken’. 

“I took him in to the other room to apply cream on his face and asked him about what happened.

“He answered, ‘Joe do it’.

“I asked him to say it again and he said ‘mummy go to shops for carrots and Joe go boom’. He made a pushing motion with his hand.”

Mrs Grantham told the court that she told her husband and Lauren about what Harry had said to her but was reluctant to believe him because he had told fibs in the past.

She added: “I just didn’t believe that anyone could hurt a little boy in that way. I regret not saying anything now.

“It’s the biggest regret of my life that I didn’t believe him.

“I didn’t think anyone could be so wicked. I didn’t act on it but I should have and should have contacted local authorities."

On cross examination Miss O’Neill described Harry as gentle and kind. 

She said: “He wasn’t a typical boy.

“Everyone said he should have been a girl. He was so pretty.

“If I was ever crying he would come up to me and give me a cuddle.”

When asked about the week prior to Harry’s death and if she had noticed anything unusual when washing or dressing her son, Miss O’Neill admitted Harry did have a few bruises on him but she put that down to sleepwalking.

Eke is also accused of unlawfully wounding the child, causing actual bodily harm and grievous bodily harm. He denies all the charges.

The trial continues.