News

Eight years ago my ex-husband was imprisoned for the sexual abuse of my daughter and son. While still in prison he applied for access to our nine-year- old daughter.

After being independently supported by a child psychologist my daughter decided that she did not want to see him and asked me to oppose the application. Three years of stress followed as a further application was made when the first was rejected.

At a county court hearing I had to sit across a table from my children's abuser and give my reasons for wanting to keep my child safe from a paedophile. Eventually, his last application was dismissed in a crown court.

My ex-husband received legal aid to support his application. I received no financial help at all, because I earn a salary. Without the help, advice and support of the Children's Advocacy Service and Victim Support I would never have been able to fight at all.

The damage to myself and my children was significant. I had to work hard to keep them together and sane. My beautiful children suffered even further harm and I underwent considerable distress - all funded by the taxpayer. Victims pay in every respect and sometimes they pay too much.

Social care professionals need to know that this situation can occur. The ones that I have told have been surprised and horrified. I have visited my MP requesting that this issue be raised with the home secretary, to no avail.

Name and address withheld

Youth no bar to maturity

I was astounded and appalled to read the comments of the National Organisation of Practice Teachers co-chairperson, Konnie Lloyd, regarding her views on the age of people coming through the new three year DipSW programme (News Analysis, 13 June). I hope these are not the views of the organisation.

Lloyd suggests that people between 18-20 will not have the life experience sufficient to equip them for the post.

Someone in her position should be aware, more than anyone, that such generalisations should not be made. I myself took the four-year degree and Certificate of Qualification in Social Work programme at 18 and qualified at 22, and have managed, somehow, to make a career, despite my life of ignorance up to the age of 18.

Lloyd ignores the vast amount of young people whose experience can include being carers of family members with disabilities and mental health problems, people who have lived through divorce and domestic violence, people who have been in local authority care, ex-drug and alcohol users - in fact, people aged 18-20 could indeed be well equipped to work with any client group in social work.

Clearly the responsibility rests with the academic institution to ensure that such life experience is sufficient. It is fortunate for young people it is the academic institutions that select candidates for DipSW and not Lloyd - who, it would appear, has already made up her mind.

Paul Morgan
Portsmouth

Something to chew on

Community Care sometimes uses words that give a different message to the one originally intended, something that your "Write Stuff" column often warns us against. Community Care (30 May) includes the diary of an outreach worker for an autistic charity. On Wednesday the worker had attended a forum for professionals working with Asperger's syndrome. The diary entry finishes: "It's food for thought and something to bring up with my manager."

Is this what is meant by regurgitating information?

Richard Green
Employee development officer,
Bath & North East Somerset Council

Don't dismiss drugs

With regards to the views of Peter Beresford (Perspectives, 11 April) and the subsequent comments of Trevor Turner (Letters, 13 June), the value of non-drug therapies, in terms of outcome, is not necessarily in question.

But such therapies - counselling for example - are intrinsically harder to monitor, as highlighted by Dr Turner. Monitoring of drug therapies is in fact easier using standard methods and procedures.

By the time the evidence for the efficacy of non-drug alternatives reaches the public via the tabloid press or soundbites, it is often little more than anecdotal or misleading.

The dismissive labelling of psychoactive drugs as "convenience chemicals" for effecting "social control" is emotive. The reluctance of doctors to prematurely endorse alternative therapies reflects the need to collect quality evidence so as to provide informed best quality care.

Sam Dearman
Final year medical student
University of Manchester

An alternative is possible

Your article on relatives fighting the closure of Leslie House (News, page 11, 20 June) is at the heart of the national debate on funding residential care while addressing the needs and human rights of mentally frail older people.

The Church of Scotland and the council have failed to involve residents and relatives in active consultation. Given the extent of bed-blocking in Fife and the dearth of alternative provision it is not good enough for the council to offer to scatter these residents round the area.

Two private sector providers and one housing association have expressed an interest in running Leslie House, possibly retaining staff. The Scottish executive has recently allocated £20m to Scottish health authorities to address bed-blocking.

As the lead authority in joint planning and commissioning we therefore invite the local authority to convene an urgent meeting of all partnership agencies and stakeholders including ourselves, placing the needs and human rights of these residents at the centre of funding provision. Together we are sure we can come up with an alternative plan.

Christine Jackson
Chairperson of the Leslie House 21 Group