| Location | Welney, Norfolk/cambridgeshire Border |
| Age | 6 years |
| Cause of Death | Murder |
| Date of Birth | 16/07/1993 |
| Date of Death | 06/05/2000 |
| Visitors | 7,625 since 18/02/2008 |
| Creator |
In a small churchyard at South Mimms a small grave marks the spot where a six- year-old girl is laid
to rest. With its plain wooden cross, a small toy Piglet distinguishes it as the grave of a child
among the other ornate, ivy-covered, stone memorials. The carefully tended plot stands in horrific
contrast to the short, brutal life that ended at the hands of an abusive stepmother and father.
Lauren Victoria Wright was born on 16 July 1993, at the QE2 Hospital in Welwyn Garden City,
Hertfordshire and died on the 6th May 2000 at her home in Welney, Norfolk.
Lauren’s parents, Craig Wright and Jennifer Bennett, had separated prior to her birth. After the
arrival of Lauren her father,Wright, demanded a blood test to prove that she was in fact his
daughter. Lauren became a pawn in her parents' volatile relationship. During their frequent
separations, Ms Bennett would telephone Wright and threaten to hit Lauren unless he came to visit.
As she grew up, Lauren was often left alone at the unheated garage workshop where Wright worked, or
literally dumped at the local pub. The "delightful, chatty little girl" became an object of pity and
charity. But amid Laurens bleakness there was some light. On occasions Wright would take his
daughter to visit her grandmother, Christine, and her aunts Dawn and Vicky, at the Red Hart pub they
ran in Three Holes, Norfolk. It was after one such outing, shortly before Lauren's fourth
birthday, that a fateful telephone conversation took place.
Lauren called her mother she said "Hello Mummy. Do you still love me?”
Bennett replied “No, I hate you.”
“The look on that child's face was enough to make your heart break. She sobbed her heart out."
Recalled Dawn Wright, Lauren’s aunt.
Lauren never went home to live with her natural mother.
Hertfordshire Social Services placed her on a child protection register between July 1997 and
January 1998 and a custody battle ended with her grandmother being granted a full residency order
for her in January 1998. But the pub failed by May 1998 and with it Lauren's brief happiness as she
rejoined her father. Wright had since moved to Welney in Norfolk from Potters Bar. His mother and
younger sister, Vicky, were also rehoused in the village. Next door lived Tracey Scarff - a brash,
abrasive, single mother- of- two with an unenviable local reputation. She eventually formed a
relationship with a "besotted" Wright.
Lauren continued to see her mother, and in May 1999, set off for a holiday in Turkey with Ms
Bennett, her boyfriend of the time, and three of their children. The holiday was to turn into a
nightmare as Bennett continued to vent her fury on Lauren, eventually dumping her at the British
consulate before scratching her photograph from her passport. Bewildered Lauren was met at Gatwick
airport by family members, her mother who was on the same flight never said goodbye.
Within a couple of months of Craig Wright and Tracey Scarff moving in together they annouced their
engagement, Lauren was their bridesmaid, within a year of the wedding Lauren was dead.
The abuse at the hands of Tracey Wright had started some months earlier and as the terror escalated,
Lauren became a familiar bedraggled figure, walking 10 feet behind Wright and her own son and
daughter, carrying the other children's bags, soaked in the rain while they gathered under an
umbrella. Lauren was forced to eat pepper sandwiches or insects, made to stand in front of burning
fires and beaten for wetting her bed. She was ignored as Tracey Wright bought her own children
sweets and presents. The moment the children returned from school, Lauren was sent to bed. At home,
her stepmother encouraged the other children to pick on their quieter stepsister.
Lauren began to lose weight, her hair started falling out. On hot days she boiled in shabby,
oversized clothes large enough to cover her bruises. Either too scared or too in awe of the woman
she called "Mum", Lauren mimicked her stepmother's endless stream of explanations for the injuries,
even when she was seen by a string of doctors and social workers.
On 15 March 2000, she was seen by a consultant paediatrician, Dr Jonathan Dossetor, at the request
of social workers but he agreed with the litany of excuses used for her injuries by her stepmother.
Over the months, teachers, four different doctors and two social workers saw the injuries to Lauren
but insufficient action was taken to protect her.
Lauren was used to beatings but when Tracey Wright punched her viciously in the stomach in early
May, part of her digestive system collapsed. She suffered days of agony and vomiting during which
her stepmother refused to take her to the doctor. Relatives accepted her excuses that a wardrobe had
fallen on her and that she had gastroenteritis. On the Thursday night before his child died, Wright
saw Lauren briefly in the bathroom. By now in intense pain, she simply asked for a glass of water.
On Saturday morning, Tracey Wright's young son saw her punch Lauren twice in the stomach.
At lunchtime, the stepmother came "crashing" into Lauren's grandmother's kitchen next door.
Christine, Dawn and Vicky returned to find Lauren's body on the bottom bunk of her bedroom, one arm
stiffly outstretched, foul smelling liquid pouring from her nose and mouth. Tracey Wright remained
downstairs, hysterically screaming, while Vicky went to get Wright from the pub. Dawn and her mother
tried to follow the ambulance operator's instructions, attempting to breathe air into the blocked
airways. As they lifted her shirt to start compressions, they noted bruising. By the time the
ambulance arrived, rigor mortis had begun to set in.
The paramedic looked at the father, grandmother and aunt and said simply: "I am so sorry ..." Lauren
Victoria Wright was dead.
That night her parents went to the pub.
At the time of Lauren’s death she had more than 60 bruises on her emaciated body.
Medical experts advised that the injuries sustained by Lauren were like those suffered by somebody
who had been involved in a serious car accident.
Tracey Wright's treatment of little Lauren was described as "very near the top of the scale of
inhumanity" by one of the police officers who led the investigation. Lauren Wright was brutally
killed after being let down by every single agency responsible for protecting her in the months
before her death.
Two witnesses, one a trained social worker, described Lauren as looking "like an advert for the
NSPCC" in the weeks leading to her death, while others told the court she looked like a "ragamuffin"
and a "waif".
One neighbour watched as Tracey shouted obscenities at Lauren in the street, punching her in the
head and walking off, leaving the little girl a crumpled heap on the ground and only to get up on
feet with silent tears and run after her step-mother.
Tracey Wright (31) and Craig Wright (38) were both convicted of wilful neglect and manslaughter
following a four week trial at Norwich Crown Court.
Tracey Wright was sentenced to 15 years in jail. Tracey Wright would be eligible for parole after
saving half of the 15 year term; Tracey Wright may well now be a free woman walking the streets.
Craig Wright was sentenced to 3 year jail terms for each of his convictions, the terms to run
concurrently. Craig Wright could be be released on parole after serving half of the three year
term. Craig Wright is now a free man.
Social services, plus education and health authority officials admitted that serious mistakes were
made in the way Lauren was cared for. One social services manager (David Wright) resigned as a
result of her death.
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...❀✿...........................................❀✿
......❀✿..........For You................❀✿
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♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC
Your presence we miss,
Your memory we treasure,
Loving you always,
Forgetting you never.
FOR WEDNESDAY
♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC
No farewell words were spoken,
No time to say goodbye,
You were gone before we knew it,
And only God can tell us why.
FOR THURSDAY
Thoughts Today Memories Forever
Angela Christopher’s Very Proud Mum
♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫AC♥♫
GOD BLESS YOU LAUREN
♥═══♥......Heaven......♥═══♥
From morning’s first light to evenings last star
Never forget how special you are
Now you’re an Angel in a heavenly realm
Where there is joy and there is laughter
You will never find pain.
Have fun up in heaven for all of you days
Climbing up rainbows and sliding back down
Jumping around the fluffy white clouds
Chasing flutterbyes and baby spring lambs
Smelling the flowers and dancing around.
Your earthly loss is a heavenly gain
Your feathers so white and very pristine
Your shiny new halo upon your blonde hair
Wear them with pride with your beautiful smile
As I look up to the heavens above
I will blow you a kiss all wrapped in my love
Catch and keep it as close as you can
You do the same from heaven to me
And this will be the tie till we meet again.
╚══♥ xxx ♥═══♥
Written by Debbie Flowers March 2009
╚══♥ xxx ♥═══♥
REST YOUR WEARY HEAD AND DRIFT OFF INTO DREAMS,
FROLIC IN THE SUNSHINE AND BATHE IN GODS MOONBEAMS.
USE THE STARS AS STEPPING-STONES TO TAKE YOU TO YOUR PEACE,
THE PAIN OF LIFE FORGOTTEN NOW YOU HAVE FOUND RELEASE
WITH OUT RAIN A FLOWER FOLDS,THE PETAL DROP AND DIE,
THERE WAS NO WAY TO SAVE YOU,YOU COULDNT EVEN CRY.
SO WE CRY ALL THE TEARS INSTEAD AS WE MUST LET YOU GO,
TO HEAVEN AND GODS GARDEN TO BLOSSOM AND TO GROW.
THE LITTLE SEED IS PLANTED,YOU'LL BE WATERED EVEY DAY,
THE ANGELS WILL TEND ALL YOUR NEEDS AS IN THEIR ARMS YOU LAY.
YOUR LIFE WILL BE AMAZING NOW AND FULL OF WONDEROUS THINGS,
REST IN PEACE DEAR SWEET LAUREN,GO FLY ON ANGELS WINGS.
(Author unknown
FOR MY LITTLE ANGEL FRIEND.
Somewhere over the rainbow
Way up high
There's a land that I heard of
Once in a lullaby
Somewhere over the rainbow
Skies are blue
And the dreams that you dare to dream
Really do come true
Some day I'll wish upon a star
And wake up where the clouds are far behind me
Where troubles melt like lemondrops
Away above the chimney tops
That's where you'll find me
Somewhere over the rainbow
Bluebirds fly
Birds fly over the rainbow
Why then, oh why can't I?
Some day I'll wish upon a star
And wake up where the clouds are far behind me
Where troubles melt like lemondrops
Away above the chimney tops
That's where you'll find me
Somewhere over the rainbow
Bluebirds fly
Birds fly over the rainbow
Why then, oh why can't I?
If happy little bluebirds fly
Beyond the rainbow
Why, oh why can't I?
You Will Never Be Forgotten,
You Will Always Be Forever In My Heart.xxx
SWEET DREAMS LAUREN
The Sun goes down and says goodnight
Pull your covers up real tight
By your bed we'll leave a light
To guide you off to Dreamland
Your pillows soft, your bed is warm
Your eyes are tired when day is done
One more kiss and you'll be gone
On your way to Dreamland
Every sleepy boy and girl
In every bed around the world
Can hear the stars up in the sky
Whispering a lullaby
Who knows where you'll fly away
Winging past the light of day
The man in the moon and the milky way
Welcome you to Dreamland
Every sleepy boy and girl
In every bed around the world
Can hear the stars up in the sky
Whispering a lullaby
Who knows where you'll fly away
Winging past the light of day
The man in the moon and the milky way
Welcome you to Dreamland.xxx
Author unknown.
BLESS YOU SWEETHEART............
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Sweetest Lauren xxxxxxx
The Next Place That I Go
By Warren Hanson
The next place that I go
Will be as peaceful and familiar
As a sleepy summer Sunday
And a sweet, untroubled mind.
And yet . . .
It won't be anything like any place I've ever been. . .
Or seen. . . or even dreamed of
In the place I leave behind.
I won't know where I'm going,
And I won't know where I've been
As I tumble through the always
And look back toward the when.
I'll glide beyond the rainbows.
I'll drift above the sky.
I'll fly into the wonder, without ever wondering why.
I won't remember getting there.
Somehow I'll just arrive.
But I'll know that I belong there
And will feel much more alive
Than I have ever felt before.
I will be absolutely free of the things that I held onto
That were holding onto me.
The next place that I go
Will be so quiet and so still
That the whispered song of sweet belonging will rise up to fill
The listening sky with joyful silence,
And with unheard harmonies
Of music made by no one playing,
Like a hush upon breeze.
There will be no room for darkness in that place of living light,
Where an ever-dawning morning pushes back the dying night.
The very air will fill with brilliance, as the brightly shining sun
And the moon and half a million stars are married into one.
The next place that I go Won't really be a place at all.
There won't be any seasons --
Winter, summer, spring or fall --
Nor a Monday, Nor a Friday,
Nor December, Nor July.
And the seconds will be standing still. . .
While hours hurry by.
I will not be a boy or girl,
A woman or man.
I'll simply be just, simply, me.
No worse or better than.
My skin will not be dark or light.
I won't be fat or tall.
The body I once lived in
Won't be part of me at all.
I will finally be perfect.
I will be without a flaw.
I will never make one more mistake,
Or break the smallest law.
And the me that was impatient,
Or was angry, or unkind,
Will simply be a memory.
The me I left behind.
I will travel empty-handed.
There is not a single thing
I have collected in my life
That I would ever want to bring Except. . .
The love of those who loved me,
And the warmth of those who cared.
The happiness and memories
And magic that we shared.
Though I will know the joy of solitude. . .
I'll never be alone. I'll be embraced
By all the family and friends I've ever known.
Although I might not see their faces,
All our hearts will beat as one,
And the circle of our spirits
Will shine brighter than the sun.
I will cherish all the friendship I was fortunate to find,
All love and all the laughter in the place I leave behind.
All these good things will go with me.
They will make my spirit glow.
And that light will shine forever In the next place that I go.
R.I.P.
I am so sorry your life had to end like that. After what I've read it seems like your Mummy, Daddy, Step-Mumy and brothers and sisters were terrible to you. Have a much better life in heaven and if any one hurts you then tell my big brother he'll look after you. I know he will.
Love Tammy
xxxxx
why
Anyone who does something like this to a young child should never be allowed to have kids. There are no words that i can express how i feel about the person who did this, just heartless. I sure wish the same fate on her, taste of her own medican as they say.
Lauren you are in a better place and being treated like you should be a princess, that is how all parents should treat little girls
R.I.P xxx
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