Heartless father beat his 16-day-old baby to death

A father who was supposed to be a strong pillar and defence to his daughter and the entire family has allegedly beaten his daughter to death just a day after social workers and health visitors downgraded their activities with the family.

Florence Liberty Mae Higham’s parents were known to social services however were visited by officials and told that they were going to decrease their association with them as a result of “decreased level of concern”.

Nevertheless the day after the officials visited, 16-days old Florence, was cruelly assaulted by her father Matthew Higham, with the tot suffering extensive injuries that included multiple skull and rib fractures, facial injuries and brain damage.

According to investigation in Stockport, it was heard that her abusive father, who is now serving life for murder, had already had another child removed from his care due to his drug and alcohol abuse and chastising.

It emerged Higham had earlier collected Florence from her grandparents’ house and taken her back to his home but a few hours later he dialled 999 saying the baby was “bleeding out of her nose, mouth and ears” after she started fitting as he was feeding her milk from a bottle.

When medical team got to the scene, they noticed she had multiple injuries, which also includes bruising to her head, with the tot dying at Stepping Hill Hospital despite attempts to revive her.

In an attempt to evade arrest, Mr Higham, made efforts to wash off the bloodied home prior to the arrival of the Police and Emergency Services.

Miss Collins, who had previously split from Higham due to violence in the relationship, said that the man had favoured the couple’s first child.

The mum, from Shaw Heath, Stockport, Greater Manchester, said: “With the first child, he was very good, he had safe hands but with Florence he didn’t feed her, her bottle and didn’t go near her because if he did my first child would scream the house down.

“He made a comment about him favouring the first child over Florence. I was obviously quite shocked – but I was assured that was all completely normal.”

Higham had initially denied killing his “perfect baby” but admitted murder while at Preston Crown Court in January 2016.

He now says he can’t remember carrying out the fatal attack.

At his trial the judge Mr Justice Tim Kerr said that the “evil done” by Higham in the “brutal and frenzied attack” was greater than in other cases he had considered and added: “You battered her to death, her injuries were horrifying.

“It was a crime of such unspeakable violence it is difficult to understand how any human being could do such a thing. You say you do not remember doing it. Whether or not that is true, by your plea of guilty to the murder of your baby daughter you have accepted, very late, that you inflicted those injuries on her with the intention of killing her or doing her really serious harm.”