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The social worker at the centre of the Victoria Climbie case should not have been placed on a list alongside paedophiles and child abusers, a tribunal has heard, writes Simeon Brody.

Barrister Peter Jackson QC told the Care Standards Tribunal that placing Lisa Arthurworrey on the Protection of Children Act list would bar her from working in social services, schools or the NHS, prevent her from fostering or if she had a child of her own stop her running a Parent Teacher Association or going on school trips.

Arthurworrey, who was Victoria’s social worker, is appealing against the government’s decision to put her on the Poca list.

Jackson told the tribunal there were seven “barriers to good practice,” which put her mistakes into context including inexperience, lack of training, overwork and non-existent supervision.

He questioned why not one senior manager at Haringey Council had been placed on the list.

But Philip Coppel, acting for government, said people were only placed on the list if they were guilty of misconduct, which placed a child at risk of harm and were unsuitable to work with children.

He told the tribunal she was guilty of misconduct by failing to carry out properly her duties as a social worker, leaving Victoria in a dangerous situation.

He said she was unsuitable to work with children because of her failure to acknowledge the true nature of her responsibilities and omissions.