Mother convicted of child cruelty after getting drunk on vodka

A mother has been convicted of child cruelty after the death of her five-month-old daughter who died as she celebrated her birthday with vodka hours before.

Natasha Birks, 37, of Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, was convicted of child cruelty at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court today (17 September 2025) following a trial.

The court heard Birks had consumed alcohol to a level 2.5 times over the legal drink-drive limit on the night of 1 November 2021 when she had sole responsibility for baby Rhian.

Rhian had been fine throughout the afternoon when Birks fed her a bottle around 6.30pm. After falling asleep during feeding, she was placed on the downstairs sofa while Birks put her older child to bed upstairs.

With both children asleep, Birks and a friend who was visiting opened a full bottle of vodka ahead of Birks's birthday the next day. The pair consumed large quantities of vodka mixed with orange juice and Irish cream liqueur in a separate room from where Rhian slept. Birks ate nothing to counteract the alcohol's effects and left the house several times to smoke cigarettes.

The prosecution case is that throughout the evening, Birks only briefly observed her daughter from a dining room doorway rather than conducting proper checks. When Rhian did not wake for her usual feed between 4.30am and 6.30am, Birks failed to notice this deviation from routine.

Between 6am and 9am, Birks failed to recognise her daughter's deterioration in health. When the ambulance crews arrived, they noted signs of rigor mortis which indicated that Rhian may have been deceased for some time.

Elaine Radway from Crown Prosecution Service said: "Natasha Birks chose to drink heavily while responsible for her five-month-old baby who was entirely dependent on her.

“Although she did not cause her child's death or foresee this devastating outcome, her level of intoxication meant she could not provide the supervision Rhian needed.

“The law holds parents accountable for the safety and wellbeing of their children, and as we have seen in this case, there are serious consequences when parents fail in their fundamental duty to protect vulnerable children.

“Our thoughts remain with all those affected.”

Natasha Birks will be sentenced on 18 December 2025.