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Do the circumstances of children who arrive in the UK from Africa make them particularly vulnerable to abuse, asks Frances Rickford.

Would Victoria Climbie‚ have died had she not been African? Of course, other children have been neglected, tortured and killed by their parents and carers. But Victoria's case has shown how vulnerable her particular circumstances made her, and raised the question of whether there may be others exposed to similar risks both of abuse and of systemic failure by welfare agencies to protect them.

For Modupe Debbie Ariyo, founder and co-ordinator of Africans Unite Against Child Abuse (Afruca), the answer is undoubtedly that there are. Ariyo was a witness at the seminar on identification held by the Laming inquiry in March, and also submitted written evidence. She believes African children, especially those who are newly arrived in the country and who are not living with their parents, are very vulnerable for several reasons. They and their carers have already faced the trauma of war, economic collapse, poverty or the fear of it, or violent repression - the reasons for their migration. They are trying to cope with a very different culture as well as the pain of separation from their communities and families, including sometimes their parents and siblings. Like other newly arrived child migrants, African children often find themselves in the most disadvantaged neighbourhoods in the UK. Like Victoria they may speak no English, and even those who do may find they cannot make themselves understood.

Their carers may not know how to get the child into school, or to register with a GP - let alone how to get desperately needed social support. Even more isolated, according to Ariyo, is the growing number of children brought into the country by asylum seekers whose own future is uncertain, or trafficked by members of the extended family or other contacts on false passports in the hope of gaining an education and better prospects. Ariyo is especially concerned about this group, which she believes is growing rapidly. "There has been a lot of work done around children trafficked into the UK for the purposes of sexual exploitation, but anecdotal evidence reaching us suggests that a larger number are being brought in as domestic servants, looking after younger children and doing housework." Most of this group are girls over 10 years old, employed by African professionals. According to Ariyo, the practice is now so widespread that most Africans know someone who has a domestic servant. "Some may be in school, but I doubt if any of them get paid and their employers may well be claiming child benefit for them."

But even children living in the UK with their natural parents are more vulnerable to abuse than other children, according to Ariyo. Africans are as committed to the protection of the rights and welfare of their children as anyone else, she says - it is because they want a better life for their children that African families migrate to the UK. But there is a widespread belief across Africa that physical punishment is a necessary part of instilling discipline in children. "While most parents and guardians are able to maintain the principle of 'reasonable chastisement' in dealing with their wards, we believe that it is possible for children to become victims of potential abusers who, hiding under the guise of discipline, are able to inflict untold physical and psychological harm on the child," Ariyo told the Laming inquiry.

Nervousness among professionals about being insensitive to African cultural norms was identified at the Laming inquiry as a factor in some professionals' apparent lack of action to protect Victoria. A UK-based relative of Victoria, Grace Akuba Quansah, observed at a conference organised by Afruca early this year that although nurses noted that Victoria stood to attention when her aunt was present, her social worker Lisa Arthurworrey interpreted this relationship as a normal reflection of an African cultural value that attaches great importance to seniority. Debbie Ariyo challenges the idea that just because physical punishment of children is common among Africans across the continent, it is necessarily a part of African "culture" that should be defended.

But she also believes African children in the UK may be more vulnerable to being excessively punished because the checks that exist among local communities in Africa are not effective here. Another witness at the Laming inquiry was Nana Amamoo of the African Families' Foundation, which advises African community groups in the UK. Amamoo explained that in the African context "it is a moral duty of any adult within the vicinity when an excessive punishment is taking place to tell the adult that 'You do not treat a child like that'.

"Those checks and balances are being lost in the community in the UK. Everybody is looking to social services and other provider agencies to step in."

Ariyo agrees. As well as the impact of external agencies charged with protecting children, people are also less likely to intervene because families see much less of each other here in the UK than they would in their country of origin. "Some children - like Victoria - may only see anyone outside their own household when they go to church."

Amamoo pointed out to the Laming inquiry that the relationship between statutory agencies and African community members was not one characterised by trust and good communication, and that in itself left children more vulnerable. "We should not dismiss lightly the painful relationship we have as a result of colonialism." Hurtful racial stereotypes - that Africans don't have love or concern for the welfare of their children - also discourage them from seeking help from agencies. But even when people do try to refer a child, or to seek help when they are not coping, they often cannot get their concern taken seriously, she said. Apart from any language barriers - and if they don't speak English they have little chance of being heard - there is also a sense that other issues will get in the way, such as immigration status and eligibility for services.

Amamoo said: "If it was made clear to everybody that all children are eligible for all services, it doesn't matter how they came to be here, it would make things much easier."

Ariyo also believes most Africans are reluctant to refer a child to social services, even a trafficked child. This is because they wouldn't want to be responsible for the child being deported and because there is a negative view of social services within African communities where they are seen as 'the people who take away your children'.

A Tower Hamlets social worker, Amma Anane-Agyei, recently organised two workshops on working with black African children and families, with the help of the Congolese Refugee Women's Association and the African Women's Welfare Group. Anane-Agyei argued that to work effectively with African families, like any family, it was necessary to engage them and establish some commonality with them. This meant developing some specialist skill and knowledge about African cultures, but also being aware of one's own cultural values and assumptions. "The more a worker is aware of their own cultural values, the more likely they are to be able to accommodate another person's cultural values. It will then be easier to ascertain whether there is an intent to harm or whether behaviour is as a result of a different set of values and beliefs."

She described a case of a Congolese family in which a child was perceived to be possessed by the spirits of bad ancestors - Kindoko - and to have been responsible for several deaths in the family. She said that without understanding of the family's beliefs it wasn't possible to engage with the family or effectively help the child who himself believed he was possessed.

According to official figures collected in the 1990 census there are about 80,000 African children aged under 16 in the UK, but this figure is likely to be way wide of the mark, according to Ariyo. "We believe these children are more likely to be in need and at risk of abuse than other children in the UK, especially those newly arrived and not living with their real parents."

Both Ariyo and Amamoo are campaigning to raise awareness among members of the African community, to rebuild a sense of collective responsibility for children's welfare. But agencies, too, need to rethink the way they provide services if they are to begin to break down the systemic barriers that left Victoria Climbie‚ unprotected.

The Challenges of Migration: the Experiences of the African Child in the UK, is available from Africans Unite Against Child Abuse, c/o CDD, Unit 6, Canonbury Yard, 190a New North Road, London N1 7BJ.

The final article in our Child Protection In Focus series will speculate on the future direction of services after the Laming inquiry. It will appear in the issue of 25 July. Evidence to the Laming inquiry can be found at www.victoria-climbie-inquiry.org.uk