This book is an account of the authora s experiences as a Foster carer, and in particular as a Foster carer of teenage children, over a period of more than twenty years. It is intended to dispel the notion set out over the years in the many recruitment advertisements that Fostering is a life of enduring happiness and contentment for both carers and children. It is never that glamorous. It can, however, over time, be a rewarding and fulfilling experience for both. The author and his wife have been Foster carers since 1997 and are still Foster carers to this day.

When the body of a young woman, wearing climbing shoes but no helmet, is found at the foot of a cliff in the Derbyshire gritstone edges, the emergency services are quick to treat her death as an accident, the result of a fall from a height onto a bed of rocks and boulders. The police have bigger fish to fry anyway - a violent and dangerous offender has escaped from his prison escort on the way to court and is at large on the Derbyshire moors, starting a massive manhunt involving scores of officers. That might have been the end of the story as far as the dead woman was concerned: just another victim of a hazardous activity. Her husband identifies the body as his wife. He prepares for the funeral. Her family and work colleagues grieve. A climbing accident was how Detective Sergeant Woodman first saw the incident as well. But further information leads him to question his initial view and he begins to suspect 'foul play'. A murder investigation is launched. The investigation is far from straightforward. It is hindered by mistakes and misfortune. There is incompetence, interference by a maverick officer, and even the inclement winter weather works against the proper conduct of the enquiry. And those investigating are still reeling from the events of one of the most notorious and savage series of murders in English criminal history.

When the body of a young woman, wearing climbing shoes but no helmet, is found at the foot of a cliff in the Derbyshire gritstone edges, the emergency services are quick to treat her death as an accident, the result of a fall from a height onto a bed of rocks and boulders. The police have bigger fish to fry anyway - a violent and dangerous offender has escaped from his prison escort on the way to court and is at large on the Derbyshire moors, starting a massive manhunt involving scores of officers. That might have been the end of the story as far as the dead woman was concerned: just another victim of a hazardous activity. Her husband identifies the body as his wife. He prepares for the funeral. Her family and work colleagues grieve. A climbing accident was how Detective Sergeant Woodman first saw the incident as well. But further information leads him to question his initial view and he begins to suspect 'foul play'. A murder investigation is launched. The investigation is far from straightforward. It is hindered by mistakes and misfortune. There is incompetence, interference by a maverick officer, and even the inclement winter weather works against the proper conduct of the enquiry. And those investigating are still reeling from the events of one of the most notorious and savage series of murders in English criminal history.

A full and frank account of a unique case and one of the most notorious in our criminal history. The detail comes from the personal knowledge and recollections of one who was closely involved in the prosecution of the accused, Gordon Park, who was eventually convicted of the crime nearly thirty years after its commission. The author is a former solicitor and Crown Advocate who prosecuted cases in the criminal courts for more than thirty-five years.

Memoirs of a Prosecuting Man is a frank, critical and entirely non-deferential portrayal of the personalities and practices to be found in the criminal justice system in England over a period of more than four decades from the early 1970s. The writer is a recently-retired solicitor and higher courts' advocate who practised in the criminal courts for more than 35 years.