Little Boy in the Pudsey Pyjamas… Left to Starve to Death in Britain

Our front page revealing that toddler Bronson Battersby was allowed to ‘starve’ to death in modern-day Britain was as shocking as it was heartbreaking.

The headline “Little Boy in the Pudsey pyjamas… left to starve to death in Britain” used next to heartbreaking images of Bronson in his Pudsey Bear pyjamas were sourced by the team for the front-page and drove home the futility of the situation.

Friends of the family revealed a string of failures by social services and police - in the face of their very own pleas for action to be taken. With a string of such robust witness accounts we were able to go to the local council and police for reaction - leaving them with no option but to confirm the events.

Such was the impact of our exclusive, then serving Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and (now elected PM) Sir Keir Starmer both paid public tributes to Bronson within hours of the news breaking.

Downing Street described the case as "deeply shocking and upsetting,” adding “it's right a review establishes” and saying the relevant Government department had been instructed to contact the local council.

Sir Keir said: "I can't let today pass without saying how saddened I was by the tragic death of Bronson Battersby, aged just two, who died in heartbreaking circumstances in Skegness.”

We put the claims to the local council, responsible for social services in the area, and repeatedly rang when we were unable to contact press officers.

Eventually the council confirmed it was ordered an urgent review into the circumstances of social services’ interactions with Bronson. Police watchdog the IOPC said it would looking into Lincolnshire Police’s handling of the matter.

It was later confirmed Bronson HAD died from dehydration and malnutrition.

Uncovering these events served a vulnerable family and low-income community who had not appreciated the value in raising their plight through the media unprompted - nor had they the means to appoint lawyers. Their voices would have never been heard without our digging and persistence.

The expose stands as an important example of why public interest journalism must continue to thrive - to ensure lessons are learned preventing future tragedies of this