Marion Davis to Gove: "Dismantle" the role of independent SWs

I am an independent social worker and am often asked to carry out parenting assessments during Care proceedings. The very nature of Care proceedings is that parents often feel the local authority is biased against them. They usually welcome an independent look at their parenting. Sometimes the outcome is that their parenting is "good enough" and sometimes it is not. It is not my role to criticise the local authority, but it is to add to the thoroughness of the investigations. I have had cases where significant mis - information has been reocrded and perpetuated. I always ask families to see people who can act as references for them, and this often provides very helpful information. Friends and extended family for the parents are often reluctant to speak to the social workers who have been involved in removal of children.
I complete my assessments in around 8 weeks, and this usually helps all the parties, including parents and local authrities. I am rarely challenged by any party, and this cuts down the time for the actual court hearings. It is very cost effective for the judicial system and looal authorities who might otherwise employ barristers etc for extensive cross examination. As an ISW I have had other roles as an independent social worker, for example investigationg complaints against local authorities, independent chairing of meetings like case ocnferences and reviews. Surely it is good practice to have an Independent person doing such tasks. I cannot speak for all Independent social workers, but I have 30 yeasr experience as a social worker, and of course keep up to date with all the research related to my current practice. Personally I take about 4 or 5 assessemnts at any one time. Therefore, when I am doing an assessment, I am able to focus on that work, and am not distracted or restrained by other demands on my time. Many local authority social workers are unable to give this focus, because they have much larger caseloads and are asked to do so many other tasks simultaneously. I believe that there will always be a place for Independent social workers as well as local authority social workers, just as there will always be a place for voluntary agencies as well as local authority agencies. Independent social work can be seen as a positive resource that complements the work done by the lcoal authority workers. It should not be seen as a threat or waste of resources. Lynne Barry

Just how can getting rid of independent social workers help to safeguard children? The comments made by Marion Davies do not make sense . I am a solicitor of 14 years qualification and in my experience it has often been essential to obtain a report from an independent sw. What is there to fear from an independent expert sw? She has failed to explain her view in any sensible way.

Her views on this and on serious case reviews do not appear to be child centred at all. They seem to be social worker centred. We are not concerned with the morale of social workers but the best interests of children. All professionals have their work looked at by various bodies, but they do not suffer low morale as a result of that overview. Perhaps Ms Davies should look for the real cause of low morale - is it something lacking in their training or funding? Every professional ought to be confident they can defend their actions and decisions and should not fear criticism.

Removing ISWs would increase delays and costs. An ISW commissioned near the start of proceedings can provide a comprehensive, time efficient, and skilled social worker assessment which allows for swift decision making and for cases to be concluded within the PLO guidelines. Not having such an assessment can lead to immense delays, with appointment of a series of unsuitable experts and/or frequent contested hearings and/or continual social work statements being filed which do not address the key issues for the child.
Without ISWs, the need for skilled impartial advice and assessment would be sought for elsewhere, for example through the increased use of psychologists who charge a lot more than most ISWs.

I took early retirement from Childern and families SW in 2000. Following a number of requests from past employers and colleagues I did take on discrete pieces of SW. Since this activity grew I decided to become an ISW. I have been employed as an assessor on many occasions especially for Viability Assessments under the PLO. My last case illustrates the point about Independents, the client, to be considered as a long-termn carer, was very much of the opinion that all of the LA contacts, including myself,were biased. The first part of the process was to convince the client that this was not the case. ALSO to clarify that in many instances the case-holding SW would be carrying out the assessment! By employing me the LA were demonstrating that they were behaving in an appropriate & impartial manner. In the real world many SW's are often too over-loaded with work to carry out these,often very complex, assessments. Delay in reports for Court will often have serious implications for vulnerable children who will have to wait for an available LA SW to prepare and submit a Report. All possible information should be readily available for the judiciary to make an informed decision about a child's future. I think with the amount of skill, experience and independence of thought ISW's are worth their reasonable costs.The availabity of ISW's free up LA SW's to carry out their tasks, especially in terms of Child Protection. SW's need to be 'out there' on the coalface.
Remember we are not paid if we are ill, incapacitated, or want a holiday. Also we have to fund and find training costs in order to complete PRTRL for the GSCC.Contrast and compare with any other expert called to Court or to provide and assessment.