THE daughter of a man who was abused in his own bed in a Northwich care home is seeking to change the law and help other families get justice.

George Stenhouse was hit in the genitals by agency carer Vangirai Michael Kufa during his stay at Avandale Lodge care home in Lostock Gralam – unable to communicate verbally due to a rare brain disease.

Kufa was jailed for nine months for his actions, with sentencing guidelines capping the available sentence and meaning he could be released from jail by mid-November.

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Mr Stenhouse’s daughter Catherine Walker, from Winnington, spoke on behalf of her family in court and told the Guardian that they had gone into proceedings expecting a heftier sentence.

She said: “We came out of court thinking we had got a bit of justice, but everyone I spoke to said, ‘is that all?’

Northwich Guardian:

“The main comment we have had is that the sentence isn’t long enough. There isn’t actually a law out there for the vulnerable and the elderly.

“It’s disgusting, really, and I am trying to help other people so they don’t have that struggle.”

Sixty-seven-year-old Mr Stenhouse’s Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease left him a loss of intellect, memory, and ability to communicate – although he still felt pain and emotions.

Catherine, 40, set up a hidden camera in her dad’s room after the family began to notice him becoming jumpy and agitated on their visits.

Northwich Guardian:

The incident was recorded in February 2018, and Mr Stenhouse sadly died that August.

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With her family’s blessing, Catherine’s aim is to petition the government for ‘George’s Law’, which would introduce tougher laws for those found guilty of ill-treating vulnerable elderly people.

She said: “We could all ended up in the same situation, in that predicament.

“There will be other families in this position. Hopefully we have opened up the discussion and opened people’s eyes to that fact that this kind of thing goes on.

Northwich Guardian:

“They saw my dad as a bit of paper, as a contract. It’s sad to say, but he was a nothing to them – it’s business in their eyes.

“I don’t think I will lie until something has been done. My dad would have done the exact same for me, and I am doing it for other people now.

“I don’t want anyone else to experience what we have been through, and if we can make a change for one family then that’s good.”

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A spokesman for Avandale Lodge operators HC-One said Kufa's ' behaviour goes against everything we stand for as an organisation'

They added: "When his behaviour first came to light, we immediately made sure he did not work in any of our homes again."