Should parents be able to record meetings with social workers?

 Loading ...

This follows the Family Justice Council (FJC) revealing a rise in covert recordings of social workers by parents involved in child protection cases due to a lack of trust or for use in subsequent court proceedings.

In new guidance, the FJC, which oversees the family justice system, highlighted potential harms, particularly to children, from covert recording and advised on how family courts should assess their evidential value. 

It also urged organisations to consider using overt recordings when there was a breakdown of trust between professionals and parents.

In a Community Care poll with close to 600 votes, the majority (62%) agreed that recording should be allowed, so long as it was done openly.

However, another 38% admitted they were not comfortable with being recorded.

‘We could have lost our children otherwise’

Several parents commenting on the the related article admitted they had previously secretly recorded social workers to protect their family.

“Recording social workers should be the norm,” said one.

“We did it out of pure frustration when no one was listening, proved she was lying, and a two-year battle was brought to a swift end. We could have lost our children otherwise.”

Sharron added: “Timelines are not met. They change their minds on appointments last minute, cancel them, and then [later do] the meetings without parents present. They accuse you of being challenging, aggressive and not working with them. 

“There’s just no way to fight it or prove them wrong. Every meeting should be recorded and presented in court.”

‘Our family wouldn’t have a leg to stand on’

Another parent said they had been accused of violating their social workers’ rights after disclosing they had been recording meetings, although the claim was later retracted.

“Our family wouldn’t have a leg to stand on if we didn’t have evidence of bullying and harassment from the worker,” they said.

“[There was] failure to record disclosures and [examples of the worker] repeatedly either failing to record contacts and meetings or completely falsifying notes, even of a student doing an unsupervised visit.”

Video recordings

One parent, Alex, was particularly in favour of video recording visits “to give an accurate account of what is discussed”. 

He has been covertly recording after his previous request to record a meeting had led to the council asking him to sign over the rights to the video.

‘There is very little trust in social services’

Many social workers also supported parents’ preference to record meetings, calling attention to the underlying lack of trust responsible for this.

“I think this shows that this system is broken and there is very little faith or trust in social services,” said Jules.

“Anyone in this position – social worker or parent – should have the right to record meetings and present the recording as evidence.”

Linda, a child protection social worker, recently told parents they could record meetings with her, as long as it was only audio.

“I have always thought it’s safer to assume people are recording you rather than be shocked,” she added.

“I always think having child protection services in your life must be so intrusive that it doesn’t surprise me that people don’t tell the truth or do things like record.”

‘Parents want a fair chance’

Another practitioner, Prem, spoke of parents admitting they resorted to covert recording because they felt unsafe and did not trust meeting notes. 

“Sometimes they never get the notes, and when they do, parts are missing or changed. When you are fighting to keep your child, every word matters,” she said.

“Parents just want a fair chance. Recording is the only way they feel they can protect themselves and show what really happened.”

To build trust, she advised offering parents the chance to record meetings and then share the recording. 

‘Real issue is parents feel ignored and judged’

“Right now, we are blaming parents for something that is just a symptom of a bigger problem. The real issue is that many parents feel ignored, judged, or even targeted,” she added.

“Until the system becomes more fair, open and respectful, parents will keep doing what they need to do to feel safe.”

She was echoed by Nelly, who recently had a parent admit they would be recording their meeting out of “mistrust for professionals”.

“I strongly feel there is a distraction from the main issue of mistrust. Fear is at the core of this issue and rather than focusing on recording, which parents use as a safety net, social services need to start exploring what needs to be done to rebuild trust.” 

What are your thoughts on parents recording their meetings with social workers?