Victim of 'house of horrors' foster carers to sue Glasgow City Council

A woman who was abused by a foster family in a "house of horrors" in Glasgow is planning to sue the city council.

The unnamed woman was fostered as a child by Douglas and Barbara Daniel who were jailed for two-and-a-half years in March for cruelty against children.

BBC Scotland News previously revealed that 78-year-old Douglas Daniel - the brother of a notorious Glasgow crime family boss - had 26 criminal convictions before he was accepted by Glasgow City Council's social work department as a foster carer.

A council spokeswoman apologised to anyone who had suffered abuse in local authority care, and added that it was looking into the details of the case.

Law firm Thompsons Solicitors confirmed that it was representing a woman, who has not been named, in taking legal action against the local authority.

A document seen by BBC Scotland News revealed that Glasgow City Council's social work department knew of allegations against the Daniels in 1999.

Douglas is the older brother of Jamie Daniel who police believe was the head of an organised crime group involved in drug dealing and violence across the city for years. Jamie Daniel died from cancer in 2016.

In January, Douglas and Barbara, 76, were found guilty of abusing six foster children aged between four and 14 at their home in Glasgow's Parkhead area between 1986 and 1991.

Victims told the court the pair, who fostered about 100 children, forced some of them into an animal pen, ordered one to bathe in a bird bath and made another eat a cow's tongue.

The couple, who later moved to Kent, had denied the claims but were found guilty of six charges of cruel and unnatural treatment of a child at Glasgow Sheriff Court.

The court heard that the Daniels perpetuated emotional, physical and psychological abuse on the children - who were placed in their care as emergency placements for their safety.

Some told the court they were not fed while another claimed she was made to eat from the kitchen floor.

Sheriff Arrol commended the bravery of the victims for coming forward, saying they had suffered "unspeakable abuse".

She added that the Daniels' home was meant to be a place of sanctuary for children in their care, but instead had become "nothing short of a house of horrors".

During sentencing, she told the couple: "You robbed them of their childhood. The behaviour that you engaged in towards the children in your care was cruel, degrading and humiliating."

After the initial trial, BBC Scotland News revealed that when Douglas Daniel was approved to be a foster parent in 1986, he already had 26 previous convictions - including for housebreaking and car theft.

Sheriff Arrol said: "It is quite remarkable that you were considered fit to foster any children."

In statement after the sentencing, two of the victims said the conviction had brought them validation but they were demanding answers over why they were placed with a foster parent who had a track record of dishonesty.

A council spokeswoman said: "We offer our sincere apologies to anyone who experienced abuse while in local authority care.

"We expect all carers to provide a nurturing and safe environment for children and young people.

"We can however provide assurance that practice standards and foster care approval arrangements have significantly improved since the 80s and 90s with far greater oversight and more rigorous assessments in place.

"These assessments are also subject to internal and external scrutiny.

"We are looking into the details which surround this historic case."