ROY STANNARD AND VALERIE STANNARD FROM BOW SENTENCED FOR CHILD ABUSE IN STOKE NEWINGTON

In a case that has spanned decades, an elderly couple from Bow, Roy and Valerie Stannard, have been convicted and sentenced for a series of heinous child abuse crimes committed in Stoke Newington between the 1960s and 1980s. The lengthy legal proceedings culminated in a trial at Snaresbrook Crown Court, where the couple faced a total of 18 charges related to the physical and psychological abuse of five young victims, all under the age of 16 at the time of the offenses.

Roy Stannard, aged 74, and Valerie Stannard, aged 73, initially denied all allegations brought against them. However, after a four-week trial, the jury found them guilty on March 28, with the court subsequently sentencing them to a combined total of 21 years in prison. Roy received a 12-year sentence, with nine years specifically for sexual offenses and an additional three years for child cruelty. Valerie was sentenced to nine years for her role in the abuse.

The court heard harrowing details of the abuse inflicted by the couple. Roy was convicted of multiple indecent assaults against a young girl, including groping her and requesting sexual acts. He also physically assaulted children, punching one victim and subjecting others to regular beatings. Valerie’s crimes were equally disturbing; she was found guilty of torturing children through various brutal acts, such as holding a child's hands over a gas flame, placing a lit newspaper down a boy’s trousers, and forcing soap down his throat. She also tied a child to a chair and locked another in a cupboard, acts that left lasting scars on the victims.

London Crown Prosecution Service reviewing lawyer Amee Patel emphasized the severity of the crimes, stating, “Valerie and Roy Stannard inflicted years of psychological and physical abuse on their victims. They dismissed these allegations, but witness testimony from their victims, now in their 60s, led to these convictions. Their actions have caused immeasurable ongoing harm to these individuals, and I hope today’s sentences can help them begin to recover from the pain inflicted so many years ago.”

Details of the abuse revealed during the trial painted a disturbing picture of the couple’s cruelty. One victim, now 60, recounted how Valerie had forced soap into his mouth, held his hand over a gas cooker, and set burning paper down his trousers. He described being beaten with whatever was available, with marks from straps and canes visible on his body. The victim described the experience as life-altering, stating, “She’s just a lunatic,” when asked why Valerie had inflicted such harm.

Further accounts detailed how Valerie had once shoved newspaper into a boy’s trousers and set it alight, telling him to endure the pain. She also applied cream to his burns, and he described the trauma as causing him to develop a mental illness. Roy’s violence was equally brutal; he was accused of beating the victims regularly, punching them in the head, back, and stomach, often leaving bruises. One particularly harrowing incident involved Roy hanging a boy on a door with a coat hanger, choking him, and continuing to beat him despite his distress.

The couple, residing on Barge Lane in Bow, denied all charges throughout the proceedings. During cross-examination, Roy attempted to justify his actions by claiming, “It was a very different time back then. If you gave cheek, you got a clip around the ear.” Despite this, the jury found Roy guilty of three counts of cruelty to a person under 16, four counts of indecent assault, and two counts of indecency with a child. He was acquitted of three counts involving indecent assault on a male under 14. Valerie was convicted of nine counts of cruelty to a person under 16 and was cleared of one similar charge.

Both defendants are scheduled to be sentenced on May 4, with the court emphasizing the gravity of their crimes and the lasting impact on their victims.