A woman with mental health problems has admitted killing her three-week-old baby by cooking him in an oven, writes Clare Jerrom.

Cheryl Green denied the murder of her son Mickle at the Old Bailey today but admitted manslaughter by diminished responsibility.

Prosecutor Edward Brown said: “It is abundantly clear from the evidence that Mrs Green had a serious and long-standing mental illness.”

Mickle, who had been born prematurely, died in hospital in April last year after he suffered 90 per cent burns after he was left in the cooker for just a few minutes.

Sentence was deferred for a month so more medical reports could be prepared. Green was remanded on bail on condition that she remains in the hospital where she is being treated.