Leonard Johnson and his wife Annabelle were neighbours of Tim and Sandra Arden in Fernwood Place, Handforth.
The couples' respective daughters Belinda and Victoria were best friends, leading Belinda to invite Vicky to live with her family after she was orphaned in 1991. Leonard and Annabelle were unaware of the girls' plans, leading Vicky's grandfather Alec Gilroy to invite the couple to the Rovers Return, where Vicky was living temporarily, to inform them what their daughter was scheming and ask if they'd be willing to apply for custody of Vicky. Leonard and his wife, while not outright refusing, concluded that Vicky was better placed in her grandfather's care, with Leonard adding that they would have given it serious thought if Vicky was totally alone.
The matter reared its head again the next day when Vicky, unwilling to accept the Johnsons' decision until she'd spoken to them personally, paid Belinda a surprise visit. In Leonard's absence, Annabelle told Vicky that there wasn't room for her - a statement which Belinda knew to be untrue, thus revealing to Vicky that she simply wasn't wanted.