Ombudsman backs father in claim that social services failed to protect his children

A man who complained that Birmingham council failed to safeguard
his three children while they were being looked after by his former
partner, has had his complaint upheld by the local government
ombudsman, writes Katie Leason.

In what she describes as a “profoundly disturbing case”,
ombudsman Patricia Thomas finds that the “persistent failure” by
the social services duty team to investigate numerous allegations
had grave consequences for the children, which could have easily
been worse.

All three children experienced significant neglect, the
ombudsman finds, and some of the ill treatment could have been
avoided given the time that passed before the children were
removed.

The concerns expressed by the man and his children’s
school were “largely ignored”, no proper investigation was carried
out and no social worker was assigned to the family, the ombudsman
concludes. The attitude of staff towards the man was “inexcusable”,
she says.

The council has agreed to pay the complainant £2,000 as
well as payments to the children which will be held in trust until
they are 18.

A Birmingham council spokesperson said: “The council deeply
apologises for the errors which then took place and has agreed to
pay compensation. However, the council is pleased that the
ombudsman acknowledges the actions which have been taken in the
last two years to seek to ensure that there should be no recurrence
of such a situation.”