A COUPLE kept a five-year-old boy for months in a house full of flies, with piles of rubbish and rotting food, York Crown Court heard.

Despite warnings from his school, the pair neglected the boy’s welfare so much that several of his baby teeth had exposed roots and abscesses and needed extracting, and there was no toothbrush suitable for him in the house, said Aisha Wadoodi, prosecuting.

The child’s speech and general level of education were also considerably below the average for his age.

When he was taken into foster care, he told his foster mother: “Santa doesn’t come to my house. I don’t know why, because I have been good.”

The boy was rescued when he went missing overnight and police saw the state of the house near York city centre when they responded to his mother’s hysterical appeal to find him.

There were lots of flies, every surface and the sink in the kitchen were piled high with dirty items, the fridge was full of rotting food, there was no edible food and there was dog mess in the house and in the back yard.

The boy’s bedroom had no toys or clothing, and various other items were piled in it. Its ceiling and that of another room were found to be in poor repair.

Officers mounted a search and a member of the public found the hungry boy wandering at least a mile from his home.

He had woken up, and walked out of the house. The boy was immediately put into foster care, said Miss Wadoodi.

He didn’t know what a bath was for, or how he should be washed.

Six months on, the boy is now, according to his foster mother, “a lovely little boy, very chatty, open and likes to please people”, said Miss Wadoodi.

He is doing well at school, but he never speaks about his family.

“This was serious long-term neglect,” said Miss Wadoodi.

The boy’s 43-year-old mother and her 42-year-old partner, who had recently moved into the house, both pleaded guilty to two charges of child cruelty by not providing suitable dental care and suitable living accommodation.

They are not being identified for legal reasons to protect the boy.

According to the prosecution, the mother neglected the boy between September 1 2013, and August 2014, while the man neglected him between March and August.

For the mother, Victoria Smith-Swain said she was a loving and caring parent who had been suffering from depression at the time with no support from the child’s father.

She had had difficulty coping with the demands of bringing up her son and working in a shopping centre.

The case was adjourned for the mother to provide medical evidence of her mental condition.

Her partner’s lawyers have yet to give his mitigation.

The couple will be sentenced next month at Leeds Crown Court.