December 2010 Archives

At last! You may not know it but we have for months been trying to convince the Munro review team that we can help them find out what needs to change in the child protection system by directly asking frontline workers.

And finally they've responded. Ok, so just before Xmas isn't the best timing - but on the up-side it will open up the new year with an important and (hopefully) spirited debate.

So, teaming up with Community Care in what we think, and hope, will be the first installment of a "virtual conversation" with frontline workers, Professor Munro has (below) written a letter including some questions she'd like you to answer for her.

"In June this year, the Secretary of State for Education asked me to conduct a review of child protection in England.  Since that time, people with experience of the child protection system, including professionals and children and families, have shared frank views about why it does not work as well as it should.  These views helped to inform my first report The Munro Review of Child Protection, Part One: A Systems Analysis.

Since publishing this report, I have continued to research the child protection system in detail, working with experts in local areas to see what needs to change and the best ways to go about this.  In my second report, to be submitted to Ministers in the New Year, I shall outline some potential areas for reform.  This will mark an important step towards the final recommendations I will make to Government in April 2011. 
As part of this research, I would like to put some specific questions to a larger group of professionals.  I hope some of you will answer them and I look forward to hearing your views.  Please feel free to respond to all of the questions or just those you are most interested in.

The first two questions relate to one of the Government's top priorities - getting rid of the unnecessary bureaucracy that can obstruct those working with children, young people and families.  I would like to hear the widest possible range of views, from those working within the child protection system about the precise forms, processes, protocols, regulations and rules that get in the way.

The government confirmed its commitment to ending child poverty today in a consultation which sets out its strategy for tackling poverty in the UK.

Launching the new consultation, children's minister Sarah Teather said the best way to eradicate child poverty is, "to address the causes of poverty, rather than only treat the symptoms. Frank Field's independent report on poverty and life chances, published earlier this month, is a welcome reminder of how important early years childcare and education is to setting a child on the road to success and out of poverty".

"For too long a child's birth has dictated their fate. It's a scandal that in today's society we still have 2.8million children living in poverty in the UK," she said. 

"That's why we are reforming Sure Start services to target the most needy and are extending the offer of 15hours of free childcare a week to all disadvantaged two year olds. And through the pupil premium schools will be able to support the poorest at every stage of their education."

For anyone still scratching their head about what to give a child or teenager in care this Christmas - or perhaps, if you're a foster carer or residential worker, a child that will be coming into your care over Christmas - here's a little selection of gift ideas to get you started, courtesy of Community Care readers and care leavers.

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We have some gorgeous gift boxes from Lush (pictured below) to give away to 10 lucky readers. Just email your contact details to: camilla.pemberton@rbi.co.uk. But be quick!

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Toiletries: "Lovely toiletries and hair care products in colourful packaging, such as those from Lush" suggests one care leaver. "I always loved opening them at Christmas. They will make children of all ages feel special and pampered." 

Lush have lots of lovely Christmas products (pictured left and right) so you're bound to find something to suit all ages, boys and girls. Lush products are available from Lush shops nationwide. See www.lush.co.uk, for stockists and online catalogue or for mail order call: 01202 668 545. 

Boots also has a wide range of toiletries for younger children and teenagers. Their top-rated gifts for girls this Christmas include Soap and Glory Mini series hat box, £10 (left) and Lee Stafford Professional Hair Dryer, £24.99 (right).

For boys, why not try Soap and Glory Duo Gift Set, £8 (left) or FCUK Body Sprays, £5 (right). All products are available from Boots stores nationwide. See www.boots.com to shop online or find your nearest store. Or call: 0845-121-9088 

Music: Keeping up with a child or young person's changing tastes in music is not always easy, so if you're not confident of getting it quite right go for compilation CDs.

One CareSpace user advises: "Always go for the "NOW" volumes - Now 77 has all the current stuff, but other bands they will be into are JLS, the Wanted and the Saturdays."

Pick up a copy of NOW 77, £14.99 from HMV stores or £11.99 from www.hmv.com; or call: 0845-603-8576

X Factor: For children and teenagers who've been glued to the latest series of the X Factor - and let's be honest, it's not just children and teenagers - pick up an Official X Factor calendar or Annual, or even a personalised X Factor calendar, all available from www.amazon.co.uk

DVDs: The Harry Potter, Twilight and High School Musical films are all popular, according to care leavers, who also recommend TV box sets. See www.hmv.com for their festive offers.

Diaries, iPod shuffles (left), MP3 players, digital cameras and photo albums are all good presents for older children and teenagers, according to readers and care leavers. "All these things give them a chance for space and processing of their feelings," says one CareSpace user. Ru, a care leaver, agrees: "Cameras and photo albums are good because you can be creative, while creating memories." 

Dressing gowns make great presents for girls and boys of all ages, according to one CareSpace user, because they're "the next best thing to wrapping children up in a cuddle".

Children's dressing gowns start at £9 from Marks & Spencer (right). See: www.marksandspencer.com or call: 0845-302-1234

"Things that makes you feel cosy, like nice pyjamas, soft bed socks and fluffy slippers, are great too," says Alice, a care leaver.

Toys: Buying toys for younger children can be a daunting task. Some of the most popular, we have been reliably told by Community Care readers and CareSpace users, are:

Playmobil; range of products available and prices vary; www.playmobilstore.co.uk or call: 0845-269-0943 

ELC Singalong Star Microphone (left); available from Boots (see above for details) or the Early Learning Centre; 0871-231-3513

Tech Deck Mini Skateboards; range of products available; prices vary from £5+; Click here for more details

Kung Zhu hamsters for boys or Zhuzhu hamsters for girls

Battle Striker sets; prices vary; available from www.direct.tesco.com

And if you're still spoilt for choice, www.find-me-a-gift.co.uk comes highly recommended by readers as a source of fun gifts for children. The last order date for UK mainland Christmas delivery is December 23rd.

Pic credit (top): alancleaver_2000

For every £1 spent on early intervention, councils could save up to £9.20, according to a report by the Children's Services Development Group (CSDG).

The report outlines ways in which councils can save money through strategic commissioning of children's services. It says a focus on early intervention, appropriate provision, avoiding placement breakdown and providing a transition from care to adulthood services will help councils save some much-needed dosh.

The CSDG said local authorities could save £100m each year by diverting care leavers away from the prisons system or unemployment. It said £87m could be saved in the justice system, £62m to local authority adult social care budgets, and £20m to the welfare budgets if commissioners and providers worked together to assess the needs of children, determined available resources and ensured they were placed at the right time.

The report highlights that 23% of the adult prison population were in care as children and a third of homeless people were formerly in care. By intervening early, the CSDG argues, councils will save on these services in the long-term.

This is all fair enough, but really, apart from some harder-than-usual figures, is it saying anything we didn't already know? The CSDG makes some recommendations at the end of its report, some samples being:

- Better research must be conducted into the longitudinal value of early, intensive intervention

- Challenging public spending circumstances can and should be seen as an opportunity for innovation

- Focusing on putting young people in the placement that is most appropriate to them will reduce the burden on the system

...and so forth.
All good points, but pretty painfully straightforward, no? What councils need now is more concrete guidance on how to go about all this when budgets are dangerously low.

Was at the 10th anniversary seminar for the Child Abuse Investigation Command yesterday and Lord Laming gave a speech. He pointed out that he was depressed that in all the cases he had had involvement in the same failings kept coming up again and again. He has developed four key questions for all child protection workers to ask in every case:

1. Why am I here? What's my distinctive role in this child's life? ie police and teachers aren't social workers and vice versa.

2. What am I seeing and what am I hearing? Ie what are the standards of hygiene in a house and are the parents attentive to the needs of the child. "What you smell, look or see in this home that should be the beginning of a proper assessment of the needs and dangers to that child."

3. Who else has been involved in the case and who else needs to be? Ie are the case notes good enough? What did they see, hear and smell? Are there are other workers who can help or might have information?

4. How must things change? Laming says if a worker has decided that there are causes for concern then they also need to identify what has to change and by when in order to relieve those concerns. "And this action plan needs to be transparent with all of the adults involved and upfront and clear." Time scales are vital in any action plan.

I thought they were interesting but I would have thought most social workers already do them instinctively. The only one I wasn't sure about was the timescales one and perhaps the key one?

There seems to be a lot of research and policy drivers that are urging social workers to be firmer with parents and give them a timetable or their time is up. Loughborough Uni research, Gove's remarks to the Education Select Committee, In Loco Parentis report from Demos and even the Welsh approach to intensive family support.

I can see the appeal of such a method and that it could be better for children but I also think it will result in a lot more children in care. So if we are not prepared for these children to suffer abuse or neglect for more than, say, 6 months are we prepared to pay for them to achieve decent outcomes in care in a time of cuts? It's the million dollar question in my mind.

Have just finished watching Panorama which featured the taped interview between Tracey Connelly and Haringey children's social care team leader Sue Gilmore just months before the toddler was killed. It was both chilling and thought provoking.

Chilling to hear Connelly describe her "friend" Steven as a "dreamboat" and the kind of guy she always wanted to end up with. Worrying to hear her say that the involvement of social services in her life "only started because I went off the ball for a bit. I broke up with my husband and and I kind of went a bit crazy for a while and tried to be a bit selfish which I know was wrong of me". But hairs on the back of the neck stuff during mobile phone video footage of Steven Barker showering kisses on Peter.

Thought-provoking because it examined solution focused therapy. The taped interview was for Gilmore's training in this area. The second serious case review into Baby P was less than complimentary about this type of intervention in child protection cases. However, child protection trainer Andrew Tennel pointed out that it can only work if social workers keep in mind the need to ensure the child is safe. He added that Gilmore took no opportunity to ask Connelly further about how she went "crazy" and what impact it had had on the children nor to ask further about the friend Steven. Perhaps it's pertinent to note that Gilmore did in fact fail the training.

Also thought-provoking stuff from Loughborough University and Professor Harriet Ward's research on the neglected and abused children they have tracked since 2006. She came out in much stronger terms than I have previously heard in saying that actually if parents have not turned their lives around by the time a child is six months old they are unlikely to ever do so.

Funnily enough almost everyone I speak to these days seems to be taking this line- that social workers need to be much tougher with parents and take control rather than the softer, family support role that has dominated in the past. Interestingly Connelly herself made the point "I want clear lines. I need to see what it is they want me to do to get them out of my life." Although, of course, if she had those clear lines would that simply have made her job of trying to manipulate social workers easier because she then knew what they wanted to hear?

All in all I found it interesting to actually see the mother talking as opposed to that police mugshot which was all I ever knew of Tracey Connelly before. And even as a journalist, rather than social worker, I found myself willing Gilmore on to ask some more probing and interesting questions during the footage. Of course watching that video with the evidence of hindsight is a wonderful thing. But having watched it I think it also gives a bit more life to the full serious case review (which we have converted into a training exercise so you can test what you would have done in the case).

Very interested to see what the reaction on CareSpace will be tomorrow.

Interesting study from France published in the Fetal and Neonatal Edition of the Archives of Disease in Childhood today.

It seems to dismiss the idea that it is young, poor, unemployed single women who tend to kill their new-born babies.

Researchers reviewed the case records of 26 courts in three regions of France that involved the death of a child in its first few days of life between 1996 and 2000 and found the cases made up almost a third (27%) of all intentional violent deaths during this period. They also seemed to show that the rate of newborn killings is actually five times higher than official statistics in France record.

The average age of the mothers involved was 26 and a third had at least three children already. Two-thirds had not used contraception while the rest had used it irregularly for this particular pregnancy. More than half lived with the dead child's father and two thirds were employed in jobs similar to those of women in the general population. There was also no evidence that these mothers were mentally ill or had been abused as children.

However, half of the mothers were depressed and what seemed to distinguish them were low levels of self-esteem, emotional immaturity, dependency on others and fear of abandonment.

The authors commented: "Our findings suggest that preventative action, targeting only young, poor, unemployed and single women or women in pregnancy denial may not be appropriate."

Tonight's Panorama is going to be a must-see for all social care professionals, particularly those working in child protection.

The BBC has obtained previously unseen footage of Tracey Connelly, Baby P's mother, being interviewed as part of a management training course in March 2007 just four months before Baby P's death. Experts say the video reveals key clues which should have alerted social workers to the dangers lurking in the Connelly home.

At the time of the interview Baby P was already on the child protection register, but little was known about his mother's new partner, Steven Barker - the man who, along with Connelly and two others, would later be convicted for causing or allowing the toddler's death. In fact, Tracey Connelly had denied the pair were together.

But the interview - conducted by Haringey children's services' senior team manager Sue Gilmore as part of a training course in 'solution focused practice' - shows Connelly describing Barker as her "dream man" and revealing details about their relationship which were missed by child protection. At the time of the interview, Baby P's injuries were unexplained.

Graham Badman, chair of the official inquiry into Baby P's death, said the video showed that a "willingness to want to believe Connelly" underpinned the entire case. He described her as a "manipulative person taking command, taking control of the situation and weaving the story that she wanted others to believe".

According to the BBC, Gilmore told Panorama that after the interview she instructed both Maria Ward, the social worker responsible for the case, and a manager to make checks on Connelly's new partner. Both have denied receiving verbal or written instructions.

What would you have done in the Baby P case? Take our online quiz, devised by child protection consultant Perdeep Gill. 

Baby P: In His Mother's Words is on BBC One on Monday 13 December at 8:30pm.

Are you planning to watch? Share your thoughts on CareSpace.

The ink is barely dry on Ken Clarke's sentencing Green Paper, yet the need for its reforms has been made blindingly clear today by the latest set of statistics on youth offending. 

They reveal the sombre, but not exactly surprising, news that young offenders are as likely to offend today as they were 10 years ago.

Over half (56%) of young offenders sentenced by the courts are re-convicted within a year - compared to 40% of adults - costing the economy up to £11 billion last year, according to figures from the National Audit Office.

Savings could be made by scrapping 11% of custody places, the NAO said, but pointed out that youth offending teams really struggle to cut reoffending because they have little hard evidence on which areas of their work are most effective.

This leaves the youth justice system "in a weak position to know which activities to cut and which to keep to ensure that outcomes do not deteriorate", the NAO said.

Margaret Hodge, chairwoman of the Committee of Public Accounts, said: "It is regrettable to see that practitioners have so little robust evidence about which of their many activities are most effective. This is the more worrying because, with cuts in prospect, they will soon face difficult choices about what to stop doing."

A Ministry of Justice spokeswoman said: "We welcome the NAO's report, which we will consider carefully and take appropriate action to address."

Picture credit: Tim Pearce, Los Gatos 

The emotional and mental health of young carers is compromised the longer they carry out caring responsibilies at home, according to research by Loughborough University.

A study featuring in-depth interviews with 50 young carers, conducted by Loughborough University's Young Carers Research Group and the Manchester Carers Forum, found that young people interviewed who had been caring for a relative for at least two years were "less optimistic about the future, had a poorer self view, depleted levels of interest in new things and did not feel as close to other people".

The study also revealed that around half (46%) of all the young carers interviewed felt optimistic about the future only 'some of the time', while 10% said they felt optimistic 'rarely or never'. Almost one third (32%) said they were 'rarely or never' interested in other people.

Ken Clarke's eagerly awaited sentencing Green Paper appears to have struck the right chord with youth justice campaigners, showing the government's commitment to reducing youth offending and re-offending through restorative justice and earlier intervention.

So will this mark a brighter future for the youth justice sector?

The early signs are good. Following the government's controversial decisions to scrap the Youth Justice Board - as predicted by Community Care - and move youth justice policy to the Ministry of Justice , it was clear big changes were on the way.

Yesterday's Green Paper, already described as "the biggest change in youth justice for a decade" by YJB chair Frances Done, has confirmed this. 

Designed to reduce the number of young people entering custody, it sets out the government's aims to place more trust in professionals' discretion, to ensure children are not needlessly drawn into the criminal justice system, and also outlines government plans to explore payment by results models - giving councils more responsibility for custody budgets.

Recommending a "local, joined up approach to address the multiple disadvantages" of many young offenders, the Green Paper states: "We support the Department for Education's Early Intervention Grant approach which will enable local authorities to invest in programmes for children, young people and their families who are at risk."  

(It will of course be interesting to see how this pans out in practice, given the growing and competing demands on the all-important £2bn grant and local authority budget pressures).

Picture credit: darkpatator

According to the BBC, Essex County Council is planning to sell off its children's homes to private companies or voluntary organisations and will close them if no buyers come forward.

The move, which the council has said is to make savings and improve services, could see as many as 128 members of staff made redundant if the seven homes are forced to close. The 44 children currently living in the homes would be moved to other placements.

But the plans are still just plans at the moment. Senior county councillors will decide whether to approve them at a cabinet meeting next week.

What do you think? Share your thoughts on CareSpace.

Picture credit: terren in virginia

Recently children's minister Tim Loughton told Community Care that race should not be a barrier when placing children for adoption. He claimed there were still "too many hints of political correctness" in the system and said upcoming guidance would strengthen the government's position on this.

But the author Precious Williams  (pictured) - who was raised by a white family in Sussex, although her birth parents are Nigerian and Sierra Leonean - has said she strongly disagrees.

Writing in this week's Grazia magazine, Williams hit out at Loughton's view that black or minority ethnic children should be placed with loving, if racially different, families rather than face years in care.

She writes: "If you're white and living in the Western world, it's easy to imagine race is no biggie in this supposedly post-racial era where there's a black man in the White House. But spare a thought for the token cute African kid growing up with white adoptive parents who reckon they're too enlightened to see you as black. I forsee the mother of all identity crises looming. I should know - I've been there."

She is also sceptical about the long-term outcomes for children adopted by high profile celebrities, such as Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie (pictured), claiming that "rescuing African babies has become the hottest Hollywood fad".

She acknowledges that some children in the care system will wait years for an ethnic match, or may never be adopted, but writes: "No child deserves to grow up in a care home without a family, but without a strong, supportive black family behind them, I do not see how black children will learn to love or find value in themselves... 

"Even though I am not close to [my birth mother], even though it is my white foster family who care about me the most, there is a feeling of shared camaraderie and validation in my birth mother simply understanding what it is like. There is immense power in shared experience. However much they love me, my white family will never quite understand why race matters, because they'll always have the luxury of not having to understand."

Do you agree with her? Have your say on CareSpace.

Picture credit: Rex Features

I personally can't believe MONEY, MONEY, MONEY only made it as number 22 on the list of the nation's favourite ABBA songs on the weekend. Surely it's the most important song ever written and sums up, I imagine, what every children's charity thinks every day of the week. Never mind, help is at hand with the details emerging of the government's £100m transition fund to help charities, volunteer groups and social enterprises survive the cuts.

I have my doubts if it will be anywhere near enough but if you're interested in getting your hands on some of the cash then there will be briefing events in Leicester and Nottingham in December for those who meet the criteria.

(Pic credit: Alan Cleaver on Flickr) 

Apologies for not being right up to the minute on this one but I have been away chairing conferences. However, when trawling through my emails this letter to the Guardian on the subject of volunteers in child protection caught my eye.

Interesting topic as there seems to have been mixed reactions to the idea ever since CSV began its pilots. Those on CareSpace seem undecided with some seeing the appeal of an extra pair of eyes and ears and others worried that a volunteer would become too close to a family and try to influence the social worker on a case.

Tim Loughton, children's minister, is keen on the idea but the reason for that is quite possibly exactly what is pinpointed in the letter- that volunteers are the perfect and cheap Big Society solution to the inability to recruit children's social workers.

Like with most things I suspect it depends on how it would be executed on a grand scale. On the one hand if parents are more receptive to advice from other parents it could be very effective family support work. On the other hand if you have untrained people making observations on a family situation re child protection investigations then it could be quite dangerous. There have been enough high profile examples of what happens when social worker's do not engage in reflective practice on a situation they've seen and on what they've been told by a family let alone getting the information through a third party.

There won't be any bad jokes from Brucie or jaw-dropping routines from Ann Widdecombe at this event, but there are bound to be sequins and the odd bruised toe...

Yes, I have to admit there was more than a little excitement in the ComCare offices when we heard the Department for Education was planning its own version of Strictly Come Dancing. (If you don't believe us just take a look at Tim Loughton's official twitter page).

Of course it will have to be an austerity-appropriate, toned down version of its famous namesake, and there will be no cameras, but - call us childish - we couldn't help pondering what this particular group of dancers might waltz and cha cha to...

So imagine, if you will, Tim Loughton in bright ruffled silk dancing the tango with Sarah Teather. Or Michael Gove dazzling civil servants with his own version of Flashdance... What a Feeling... I'm sure the unstoppable Ann Widdecombe and future contestant Vince Cable would be only too happy to share their tips.

We may be getting over-excited (rarely is there a chance to discuss Strictly on a social care blog), but if the DfE does hold a dance event they could be onto a good thing. Surely we all need a bit of light relief as the cuts continue to bite and the mercury plummets.

Is your organisation/office planning anything special or funny over the festive period? If so, do let us know and don't be too shy to share pictures. And we'd love to hear your suggestions for what songs you'd like to see ministers dance to...

Picture credit: yozza

Major cuts to housing benefits are unlikely to bring much Christmas cheer for the thousands of vulnerable families in the UK who rely on them. Although housing minister Grant Shapps insists the changes will lead to reduced rents and the chancellor has claimed the cuts have saved 160,000 public sector jobs...

But one expert has now accused the government of "subverting the very definition of fairness."

Alison Garnham, chief executive of the Child Poverty Action Group, has warned the changes will push the poorest families out of their homes, "creating new enclaves where the poorest are not welcome to live".

"The Government should not be throwing in the towel on mixed communities and affordable housing. True fairness means closing the deficit with tough action on those who refuse to pay their way in the tax system, not evicting the poorest from their homes and creating exclusive enclaves for the rich," she said.

Photo credit: terren in Virginia