Voice told Northampton teacher Fiona Beal 'stand up for herself'

Nicholas Billingham's remains were found months after he was allegedly killed by his girlfriend Fiona Beal

A primary school teacher who stabbed her partner in the neck and buried his body in their garden later said a voice in her head told her to "stand up for herself", a court heard.

The partly mummified remains of Nicholas Billingham, 42, were found in Northampton in March last year.

Cable ties and a bloodied mattress and duvet were found in the cellar of the house, the town's crown court heard.

Fiona Beal, 49, of Moore Street, denies murder.

Giving evidence on the second day of the trial, PC Josh Bromley, of Lancashire Police, said he was sitting a short distance from Ms Beal's psychiatric assessment after her arrest.

He said: "I heard the doctors ask a question in relation to voices in her head.

"I believe she stated that in November 2021, there was a voice in her head that told her to stand up for herself."

PC Bromley said he made an "assumption" that this related to a partner or ex-partner, but did not explicitly hear Ms Beal say this.

Bodycam footage of the assessment later showed psychiatrists confirming that she heard "different voices" on "some days", starting the previous November.

'Very disturbing'

PC Josh Parkin, of Cumbria Police, who found Beal on 15 March at a lodge in Windemere, Cumbria, told the court that during a search of the house he had a "cursory" look at the blue notebook in which the prosecution allege that Ms Beal planned how to murder Mr Billingham as early as October 2021.

He noted Ms Beal claimed Mr Billingham had "cheated on her with someone on the same street" in her writing.

Police searched Ms Beale's home after arresting her in Cumbria

In a statement read out in court, PC Benjamin Lawson said he was shown the blue notebook on the same day while supervising Ms Beal in hospital.

While the notes "appeared to describe [Ms] Beal killing someone" he dismissed them as "ramblings", adding at that stage he did not believe someone had been killed.

PC Roy Williams, a colleague, said in a statement that he also felt the notes were "ramblings", but said: "There were aspects of it that were very disturbing."

Both he and PC Lawson contacted Northamptonshire Police on 16 March to see if anyone connected or living with Beal had been reported missing.

Mr Billingham's remains were found three days later.

Prosecutors told the trial on Monday that Beal stabbed her partner in the neck after telling the school where she worked that she had tested positive for Covid.

Her defence said it was not contested she had unlawfully killed her partner, but she had been manipulated by the "psychologically domineering" Mr Billingham to the point where she was "broken" and was not in the right state of mind.

A pathologist concluded Mr Billingham died from a single stab wound to the right-hand side of his neck, which cut through the jugular vein.

The trial continues.