Boy, 13, 'may not be baby's father'

12 April 2012

Baby-faced Alfie Patten may not be a father at 13 after all amid allegations that the mother has had several other sexual partners, it was reported.

The case of Alfie - who was just 12 when the baby was conceived - has already provoked a fierce political debate over the high rate of teenage pregnancies in the UK and the sexualisation of children.

But two other teenagers believe they may have fathered six-day old Maisie, whose mother Chantelle Steadman is herself just 15.

Richard Goodsell, 16, told the News of the World that he also shared a bed with the teenager at her home in Eastbourne, East Sussex, at around the time she became pregnant.

Richard, a trainee chef, said: "I know I could be the father. Everyone thinks I am. My friends all tell me that the baby has my eyes - even my mum thinks so. Even Chantelle's mum asked me if I was the father. If I am the father, I have the right to know."

Richard, who told the paper he slept with Chantelle with the consent of her parents and without using any contraception, said he plans to demand a DNA test is carried out to find out the truth.

Chantelle lives with her mother, Penny, and father, Steve, in a council house on the Old Town estate.

Tyler Barker, 14, also told the paper he could have fathered Maisie, born at the Eastbourne District General Hospital last week. He said he slept with Chantelle around nine months ago, again in her own bed. Realising the gravity of the situation, he added: "I hope it's not me."

Both boys and their parents are reported to have made sworn statements in front of a solicitor detailing their encounters with Chantelle.

The situation has provoked outrage from politicians and charity workers who said it exemplified the "complete collapse" of parts of society. Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith, who runs the Centre for Social Justice think tank, said the birth highlighted another case of "broken Britain" where "anything goes".

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