The woman, now in her forties, was just 16 when she moved into the home of Amanda Wixon in the Priors Park area of Tewkesbury in 1995. She remained there until 2021, enduring years of abuse, isolation and forced labour.
Gloucester Crown Court was told that the woman, who has learning difficulties, came from a dysfunctional background and was taken in by Wixon, 56, who lived with her ten children. Judge Ian Lawrie KC said the case had a “Dickensian quality” given the victim’s vulnerability and the conditions she was forced to endure.
Jurors heard that the woman was regularly assaulted, including being beaten with a broom handle, which caused her to lose teeth. Washing-up liquid was squirted into her mouth, bleach was splashed on her face, and her head was repeatedly shaved against her will.
The court heard she was left with scarring to her lips and face, as well as large calluses on her feet and ankles after spending years on her hands and knees scrubbing floors.
Neighbours described her as emaciated and unrecognisable. One said she looked “like something out of a concentration camp”, while another described her as “skin and bone” with a shaved head, and recalled seeing her being struck with a broom.
Police visited the property in March 2021 following concerns raised by one of Wixon’s sons. Officers described the house as overcrowded and squalid, with mould on the walls, damaged plaster and rubbish filling the garden. The woman’s bedroom was likened to a “prison cell”.
When spoken to by officers, the woman said she did not feel safe and described being repeatedly assaulted. She also said she had not been allowed to wash for years.
Wixon was convicted of false imprisonment, two counts of forcing a person into compulsory labour and three charges of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
The court heard that although social services were involved with the family in the late 1990s, there were no records of continued oversight. The woman had no medical or dental records and had not seen a doctor for around 20 years.
Since escaping the household, she has moved in with a foster family, returned to education and travelled abroad. However, the court heard she continues to suffer nightmares and has an overwhelming compulsion to clean.
Wixon denied all charges and blamed her estranged son for influencing the woman’s account. Her defence argued that the allegations were fabricated and described the prosecution’s case as implausible.
Following the guilty verdicts, Wixon was released on conditional bail ahead of sentencing on March 12. As she left court, she said she had little to say to the victim and denied any wrongdoing.
