August 2010 Archives

Roll up, roll up everyone. We know you are suffering with unmanageable caseloads- fill in our survey and help influence the Munro review of child protection systems.

Professor Munro has said she is interested to see the final results and we will be formally submitting them to her review.

Fill it in now or forever hold your peace! The survey closes on Tuesday.

Interesting article in the Daily Mail today about the psychological impact on siblings when an adopted child is "sent back". Michael Bywater writes that he's only just realised that so many of his "inexplicable" reactions can be sourced to a basic fear that if one sister could be sent back so could he or so could the next (birth) sister that came along.

What struck me particularly is that he doesn't blame anyone, he just points out that it's one of those things that happen in life. In a similar vein author Precious Williams recently wrote a column for Community Care about her experiences as a black child adopted by white parents.

All very thought provoking, particularly as I think the issue of increasing adoptions may well come back on the agenda in the near future.

(Pic credit: Finzie on Flickr)

A shameless copy and paste from our workforce colleague, Dan Lombard and the social work blog. Really annoyed that I can't, at the moment, get onto the site to play the game at the moment but will let you know how I score!

Test your investigative social work skills with this interactive online quiz.

You are faced with a schoolboy complaining of being hurt by his father - what do you do?

The Association of Directors of Social Work in Scotland have launched the game as part of their campaign to increase public understanding of the profession, Social Work Changes Lives.

I tried it out this afternoon and while I must admit to getting one of the answers wrong it was an engaging and eye-opening experience, and demonstrated how much social workers have to think on their feet in child protection investigations.

Mental note: if a parent answers the door and is drunk and abusive, don't back off and call for help, either from the police or from colleagues. Without wanting to give the game away, mum could either assault the police or disappear without trace!

Watched the Panorama investigation of a couple accused of abusing their son last night. The subsequent criminal investigation was dropped through lack of evidence and the care application was denied.

I felt for the parents, I really did- it was a horrible situation. But it was also hard for me to feel anyone was to blame for what followed.  To be honest I was impressed that the family court came to the right decision in the circumstances.

 In the current climate of tabloid frenzy around child abuse, unexplained injuries to a child that could possibly have been caused by the parents will be every social worker and doctor's nightmare. Although the parents seemed loving and caring, there are plenty of cases where parents have given similar impressions and been found to be abusing their children or complicit- Baby P was in fact just such a case.

And surely we would not want police, social workers and doctors to dismiss fears simply because the family involved is middle-class and educated?

The fact remains that to this day there is no explanation for that child's injuries. I agree with the doctor who said that unexplained injuries should not immediately be considered a sign of child abuse. But I also profoundly disagree with Panorama's naming and shaming of the doctor's involved in the case who said the injuries were likely to have been inflicted rather than accidental. Child protection is a difficult and complex area and I doubt any doctor in their right mind will now agree to be witnesses in such cases.

Interesting debate now going on in Carespace on the topic if you want to read further or have your say.

Victoria said: "Secrecy means that families can't find out about experts. They can't find out exactly what to expect, about what will go on in court. They can't share experiences. They can't adequately prepare themselves for what's going to happen either emotionally or practically in terms of making sure that they have the necessary experts and evidence that they need to be making their case."

Panorama points to the only recently lifted ban on press coverage within family courts as part of the problem. The Wards have been successful in their campaign, however. Three years after their case, reporters are now allowed into family courts. And in the final week of the last Parliament, a bill was passed which allows the Ward ruling that paid expert witnesses can be identified.

Panorama: Please Don't Take Our Child will show on BBC One, Monday 23 August at 8.30pm.

What do you think about the programme? Have your say on CareSpace.

photo credit: Rex Features

Most readers of Community Care will be all too familiar with the problems besetting foster care in the UK today, but ITV - with the help of The Who Cares? Trust - did a good job of flagging them up to millions last night at 7:30pm.

ITV viewers were invited into the homes of a selection of foster families, all looking after children who were troubled and challenging, but no less lovable. All demonstrated the enormous value of foster care when it works.

One young care leaver described being fostered as, "the best thing anyone could have ever done for me." But foster carers told of obstructive red tape which prevents them from having the authority to make day-to-day decisions for the children they care for.

Some were unable to allow children to stay overnight with friends, while others had to seek permission before they took children for haircuts and most spoke of children forced to miss out on school trips or family holidays because paperwork was not signed off, or returned on time. Bureaucracy at its best eh.

Children's minister Tim Loughton (pictured) - no stranger to prime time audiences after his turn on Channel 4's Tower Block of Commons - made an appearance too, to call for more recognition for foster carers, who he urged to out any "excessively bureaucratic" councils.

Loughton said foster carers should be given the authority to make decisions about the day-to-day care of the children they foster.

Have a look at the broadcast yourself here. It's well worth a watch.  

Photo credits: Rex Features

Influential think-tank Policy Exchange has called for the Youth Justice Board to be axed, branding the quango "ineffective and expensive", "wasteful" and "overly bureaucratic".

The criticisms came in its report, published yesterday, which revealed a severe lack of confidence in youth justice policy.

Policy Exchange slammed the YJB, saying its functions could be given back to the Ministry of Justice - a move it said would save the department almost £100 million over four years.

Max Chambers, a research fellow in the think-tank's crime and justice unit, said: "The new Government needs to get a grip on youth offending and get the money to the front line.

"Given this, and the scale of the savings required, this means that the YJB should be scrapped. Although full of well-meaning officials, it is wasteful, overly bureaucratic and its central co-ordinating functions could easily be given back to the Ministry of Justice."

Chambers also recommended devolving youth custody budgets to local authorities.

The much-speculated-about future of the YJB should become clear in the autumn, with the publication of the government's green paper and the comprehensive spending review...

Frances Done, chair of the YJB, said: "There have been significant achievements in the youth justice system. Over the past couple of years, 20,448 fewer children and young people entered the youth justice system,  there have been over 5,000 fewer re-offences committed by under-18s, from 2005 to 2008, and in the last  few years over a thousand fewer young people have entered custody.

"These Government figures show a youth justice system which is delivering results. The YJB provides leadership in cohesion and innovation in achieving the best outcomes for some of the most challenging and volatile children and young people in our society.

"The YJB has demonstrated that working in partnership with different local agencies gives under 18s, in trouble with the law, the best opportunities to stop re-offending and provides the best chances of rehabilitation, leading to more productive lives."

Photo credit: Rex Features 

Interesting little collection of stories today. The thinktank Demos and the Foyer Federation have recommended employers offering high quality internships to care leavers and young offenders should get a "pay-back" from the government. Demos used to always be thought of as a Labour thinktank but The Telegraph says it is becoming increasingly close to the Coalition government which could make things interesting!

In other news, many thanks to Chris Mills and his child protection blog for spotting that Scotland has at last passed its new legislation that increases the age of criminal responsibility from 8 years to 12 years. Here's hoping England will follow suit, although not sure I'm counting my chickens just yet.

Also, The Independent highlights an interesting side-effect of the immigration cap on those councils rushing off to America to recruit child protection social workers. What bothers me is that we're constantly contacted by newly qualified social workers who can't get jobs yet all the councils tell us they can't recruit and need to go overseas to find child protection social workers...what's going on?

The Khyra Ishaq serious case review showed one of the social workers involved had over 50 cases. Is this widespread? Do other social workers have this kind of caseload? We'd like to know. Take our caseloads survey at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/KTLBTS3

If we get enough responses we will ask Professor Eileen Munro to consider the results as a late submission of evidence to her review.

Very sad story from the courts about "parental alienation" syndrome on Family Lore blog.

You've got to hope that when the child gets older he'll want to see his father. You have to feel for the social workers involved in such a tough case as well.

(Photo credit: Rex Features)

The children's charity, led by the omnipresent Camila Batmanghelidjh (pictured), is well known for pioneering revolutionary approaches to working with children, and a little bit of controversy... 

The new course, 'Therapeutic Communication Skills for Work with Children', will start in January 2011, validated by the London Metropolitan University. It will enable students to "discover the value of creative and relational approaches, and to adapt and apply therapeutic thinking in their work with children", according to Jocelyne Quennell, course director.

Picture Credit: Rex Features

Sir Nicholas, head of the family justice division at the High Court, wanted to highlight judges' "serious concern" over the moves, which could see a halving in the number of lawyers working for the UK's poorest and most vulnerable families.

He warned the family justice system is in "grave danger of imploding".

An important issue, as today's report from Barnardo's also reflects. Expect more on this in our news pages and magazine.

Only a short while after the government pledged to end the detention of children in immigration centres, its methods of doing so are raising alarm bells.

It seems a pilot scheme, detailed in a UKBA briefing paper leaked to The Guardian and Socialist Worker, has been running in the North West since July, designed to deport asylum seeking children and families "within weeks."

Sarah Campbell, research and policy manager, at Bail for Immigration Detainees (BID), called the moves "poor practice" and said she was "very disappointed" that the government-scheme had been running since July without due communication or consultation.

Campbell told Community Care: "It is very disappointing that this information, which is being leaked to the press, has not been shared with us, and it is regrettable that those working with asylum seeking children and families have not been consulted about this practice.

"There is a lack of clarity regarding these families and how they're dealt with. Deporting them in a few weeks is inadequate, especially when some will have been living here for several years at least. Facilitating the safe, and voluntary, return of these vulnerable families would be easier if information was well-communicated and in the public domain."

Picture credit: Rex Features

Deputy children's commissioner Sue Berelowitz will become the new chair of children's mental health charity YoungMinds, it was announced today.

Berelowitz, who is also chief executive of the office of the children's commissioner, was previously director of business development for adults and children's services at West Sussex County Council. She will take over from current chair Dr Mike Shooter in September.

She said: "Children's mental health and emotional wellbeing have long been of significant concern to me and in these challenging economic times it is going to be more important than ever to ensure [those] who need support from mental health services are able to access good quality provision in a timely way."

Sarah Brennan, YoungMinds chief executive, said Berelowitz's appointment marked "an exciting moment" for the charity.

A major study in Scotland has found three in four teenagers in residential care by their 16th birthday will have a criminal conviction by the time they turn 22, the Herald Scotland reports.

Almost a third (31%) will have spent time in prison, the research by the Edinburgh Study of Youth Transitions and Crime found. 

Researchers, who followed 4,300 young people from 1998, have said their findings suggest residential care should be avoided if necessary.

The report is one of the few studies to provide concrete figures on the suspected link between care and criminality. England-based charity The Adolescent and Children's Trust (TACT) is currently researching the issue too.

Picture credit: Rex Features