Respectful uncertainty

15 August 2009

The Spectator on the plight of Britain’s vulnerable children

Instead, Haringey social services, clinging to a hopeless doctrine known as ‘Solution-Focused Brief Therapy’, followed the line of least resistance: crossing their fingers and hoping that Peter’s chocolate-smeared face was not covered to disguise bruising, that the discharge from his ear and rash did emanate from garden play, that the finger marks apparent on his body were merely the result of ‘rough and tumble’.

Perhaps in isolation, these excuses might, just conceivably, have been convincing. Taken together with a GP’s repeated cautions, and with the history of violence in the household, they were not.

Since Peter’s death, more than 30 children under the age of five have been murdered or died of abuse. Yet the 30,000 children on the child protection register only feature in mainstream political debate occasionally. The plight of Britain’s vulnerable children vanishes from our public discourse for years at a time before another grotesque example — Chelsea Brown, Ainlee Labonte, Lauren Wright, Victoria Climbié — reminds us that the system we pay for doesn’t work.

In his inquiries, Lord Laming has already told us where the fundamental problems lie: the rate of staff turnover in children’s social services stands at 10 per cent. In some authorities half of the staff have been qualified for less than a year. He describes child social work as a ‘Cinderella service’ with ‘low morale, poor supervision, high case-loads, under-resourcing and inadequate training’. These are systemic problems — but ‘systems’ won’t save children like Peter Connelly; that can only be achieved by individuals deploying good judgment. We have seen the lethal consequences of cuddly credulity. We have seen the faces of those who tormented Peter to his final breath. The moment has come for social workers to adopt what Lord Laming has termed ‘respectful uncertainty’ — lest we find ourselves in a few years’ time asking the same ghastly questions all over again.

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Ray

August 13th, 2009 8:02am Report this comment

The time has common for social workers to get their heads from out of their social administration text books and use some common sense.

Liz Brown

August 13th, 2009 11:15am Report this comment

.........and we now read that Baby P's father is seeking compensation. By what measure does he think that he has a case? Where was he when his son was being abused by the mother and boyfriend? Why, too do the social workers feel that they are also entitle to compensation? These cases should be dismissed before any more public money is thrown at this tragedy