‘Lenient’ Barnard Castle women’s jail terms won’t face review

Kerry Anne Pickersgill and daughter Ellie Newby, of the farm in Marwood, Barnard Castle, handed a suspended sentence and community order respectively for their treatment of dogs and horses.

The pair were sentenced at Durham Crown Court on February 13 for the treatment of 40 horses and dogs after the RSPCA discovered dead and dying equines at their farm in February 2025.

Neglect (Image: RSPCA)

Pickersgill, 48, pleaded guilty to 15 offences relating to 22 horses and 21 dogs, and one charge of breaching a ban on keeping animals for life imposed in May 2015. She was handed a two-year jail term, suspended for two years.

Newby, 25, admitted two offences in relation to two dogs, and was given a 12-month community order with 150 hours of unpaid work and disqualified from keeping dogs for five years.

Their sentences were referred to the Attorney General’s Office for review for being ‘too lenient’ under the Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme where anyone can ask for a sentence to be reviewed if they don’t think it is harsh enough.

But Pickershill and Newby’s sentences will not be reviewed due to the fact their offences aren’t covered under the scheme.

A spokesperson for the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) said: “The offence involved in this upsetting case is not within scope of the Unduly Lenient scheme, as it is not an indictable only offence.

Horses found in one of the buildings (Image: RSPCA)

“Because of this, the law officers were unable to review under the scheme.”

In total, twenty-two horses, some collapsed and the majority underweight, were found living alongside dead equines in filthy barns and stables.

Twenty-one dogs, many matted with mouldy faeces, were also discovered in sheds and trailers.

At the top of the drive was a large area where items were being dumped.

There was evidence of a fire having been lit, and among a mound of straw, wood and bedding material were the carcasses of at least two horses, one of which was partially charred.

In his written evidence, RSPCA Inspector Ian Smith described seeing horse bones: “As I approached the mound I saw the skeletal remains of an equine,” he said.

“The rib cage was clearly obvious, and a foreleg under some branches.

“As we walked round the pile, I came across bones from various parts of an equine’s body and a head. These had been there for some considerable time, as flesh had decomposed.

“I was then taken to a stable which had no lighting, but I was still able to see a chestnut foal and its dead mother lying in the corner.

His colleague, Inspector Clare Wilson, said in her evidence: “Most of the dogs were kept in the dark, and the lights that were pointed out by Ms Pickersgill did not work when turned on.

“Many of the dogs were extremely underweight, with all bones easily seen and felt, and all were matted, stained and smelly, most with mouldy faeces matted into their fur. I saw a dead horse on a muck pile outside in the farmyard.”

Neglect (Image: RSPCA)

A total of 16 live horses were transported to a private equine facility for immediate veterinary treatment. Six of them were owned by other people and were on loan to the defendants at the time.

Female Cockapoo Bumble when rescued (Image: RSPCA)

Pickersgill and Newby also agreed to sign over the dogs, which included Spaniels, Cockapoos, Poodle crosses and Old English Sheepdogs.

The vast majority of dogs were nursed back to health and rehomed by the RSPCA’s Great Ayton Animal Centre in North Yorkshire and Felledge Animal Centre in County Durham.