News

Children's charity the NSPCC has denied claims from its staff that it has "lost the plot" following the announcement that it plans to realign the charity's work and scrap 18 projects.

Staff claim the one-month consultation on the threatened closures has been "just a formality" and that appeals against closure plans had been hindered by the charity's "one-liner" explanations about decisions.

The NSPCC accepted that its responses were "succinct", but insisted questions had been answered "as well as they could be".

However, the outcome of the consultation process, announced this week, revealed very few amendments to the original proposals. The NSPCC said 88 redundancies had been identified overall, but that there would be some 200 vacancies following the alignment process. Redundancy notices are due to be sent out in the first week of December, and will become effective from the end of February 2002

The British Union for Social Work Employees (Buswe)has pledged to fight the closures and is encouraging staff to refuse redundancy and is considering tribunal action.

"None of this makes sense," said Buswe general secretary Steve Anslow. "They are not re-aligning, they are reducing services. We say that is wrong. You ought not be looking at the services you directly provide for kids. You ought to be looking at the rest of the empire."

Similar feelings were expressed on the NSPCC's internet chatroom by staff members.

"They are focusing on school teams and young abuser projects and going away from child protection work," one NSPCC employee facing redundancy told Community Care. "You can't help the abusers if you are not helping those who have been abused. I think they have lost the plot. If our work doesn't protect children, I don't know what does."

Another member of staff added: "The top management don't seem to have a clue about what's needed at the front line."

But the NSPCC has emphatically rejected the allegations, stating that it remained focused on being a child protection agency.

"The NSPCC exists to end cruelty to children and we will continue to develop and supply services that address that aim," the charity said in a statement. It added that new or expanding services, such as the internet, the helpline, or the special investigation service, would cover the country and even reach children currently not helped by anyone.