Granddaughter of Churchill Dies As Australia Jails Her Son

Arabella Churchill, charity worker, co-founder of the Glastonbury festival and granddaughter of Sir Winston, died of cancer early yesterday - the same day that her son was jailed in Australia for his part in a multi-million pound drug racket.

Churchill, who died at home in Glastonbury, aged 58, was the daughter of Randolph Churchill and his second wife, June Osborne. Named Deb of the Year in 1967, she shrugged off her illustrious pedigree to work for a leprosy charity and married a teacher, Jim Barton, in 1972.

In the early 70s she became involved with the Glastonbury festival and helped set up the children's festival area there in 1980. The next year she founded the Children's World charity, now a global concern. Although she had declined chemotherapy to treat her pancreatic cancer, Churchill had been expected to live until next spring. In Sydney yesterday her son, Nicholas Jake Gompo Barton, was jailed for three years after pleading guilty to being involved in a large-scale ecstasy plot. However, the judge said that the 33-year-old would be eligible for parole next February so that he could visit his mother.

Judge Colin Charteris said there had been an opportunity to "temper justice with mercy" because of Barton's family circumstances: "In determining the appropriateness of the sentence the fact the defendant is descended from a hero of the 20th century does not affect the sentence I must impose." He said the information was "of historical importance only".

Barton had admitted taking part in the supply of a commercial quantity of a prohibited drug. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Barton was arrested last June after a three-month undercover operation by police. About 250,000 tablets, 18kg of MDMA - the powder used to make the drug - and two industrial pill presses were confiscated by police in a series of raids. The tablets had a street value of $12.5m (£5.4m) and the powder was worth about $2.5m. A large amount of Australian currency was also found.

The court was told Barton sublet a property in the Sydney suburb of Coogee to a co-accused, Reese Gerard Woodgate, a New Zealander who has also pleaded guilty. In a statement to the court Barton said he did not know Woodgate was involved in the illegal drugs trade but when he did find out "to my utter regret, I didn't take action to stop it and became complicit". Barton, who emigrated to Australia when he was 18, said he regretted bringing disgrace and shame upon his family.

Judge Charteris said he believed Barton had "a limited role in the supply of drugs seized by police" and that there was no evidence he had profited. He said Barton's guilty plea, despite the Crown's weak case, indicated "genuine contrition". The prison sentence was backdated to June 17 last year, when he was first taken into custody, meaning he will serve a total of 20 months.