Paula Hudgell fights on for child cruelty register

The adoptive mother of a boy abused so badly as a baby his legs had to be amputated said she was hopeful a second attempt at creating a child cruelty register will succeed.

Paula Hudgell, who has been diagnosed with terminal cancer, said her 11-year-old adoptive son Tony "gives me that fire in my belly" to fight on.

It would work in the same way as the sex offenders register, with anyone convicted of child cruelty forced to sign it, and is being debated as part of the government's sentencing bill on Thursday.

Ms Hudgell told BBC South East she was "not going anywhere without a fight", after an attempt under the previous government failed in 2023.

Ms Hudgell said a register could prevent those convicted of reoffending.

"These offenders can go off and start new families," she said. "They can be about children, they could be your neighbour looking after your child.

"Like Claire's Law, if someone's started a new relationship with somebody they're just not sure about, by having this child cruelty register the police would be able to notify them.

"I don't think in child cruelty cases anybody deserves a second chance, we're talking about cases where children have died or, in Tony's case, suffered life-long injuries."

Ms Hudgell was diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer in 2022, which she was told in July is terminal.

"I've been on chemo every two weeks," she said. "It's been tough, it's been hard, but this campaign is the fire in my belly.

"I don't want to go anywhere until I know that there is a child cruelty register.

"How long I've got, who knows? I'm not going anywhere without a fight. Tony's my inspiration.

"It breaks me that I might not see him grow into adulthood, see him married, have his own family, that really does break me but I will fight for as long as I can to be here for as long as I can."

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