General Chat

Since I haven't followed the original case, I can't comment on that but can report a half heard conversation.

A young woman had worked in some form of work experience placement with SS. One case obviously involved child neglect or cruelty. She had challenged the social worker as to why the child hadn't been removed. Her own comment to her companion was that she got the impression that it wouldn't happen until the child was seriously injured, by which time it could be too late.

Even when concerns are raised by outsiders, the wheels turn exceedingly slowly. Our daughter aged about 12 told me her school friend had said her parents had hit her. It may have seemed wrong to her because we used other ways to discipline.

I phoned the school child protection officer who should have recoded it and notified SS. I got the impression he thought the girl was attention seeking. It took 2 years before the child was removed and that was only because the Head saw her father lash out at the girl while outside the school!

On the other hand a younger child with special needs claimed his step-father had caused a bruise. The SF had to move out will it was investigated. As it happens the SF was exonerated ( sp). The child had banged himself while climbing on furniture but lied because he thought he'd be told off.

JoonieCloonie - an excellent comment.

I just wanted to say that sometimes people say they don't want to make a report because 'I don't have any proof'

nobody should ever worry about that ... it isn't our job to get proof or even evidence

If somebody has some reason to think a child is being harmed, that is good enough reason to report it, whatever that reason is, whether it is bruises or behaviour ... and it is the job of the social services or the police to find whether there is evidence of the child being harmed.

Erring on the side of the child is never a bad thing.

My grandson had one useless s/w and we found out last week she was agency and she was not renewed. Saving now a few more children from harm

I know many Social Workers are good people but there seem to be too many who are useless at their job and do not do what is needed to keep children and others safe.

Lizx

Not just the UK :-(

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/sa-coroner-mark-johns-hears-24th-day-of-evidence-in-the-chloe-valentine-abuse-and-neglect-inquest/story-fni6uo1m-1227229866722#itm=newscomau%7Chome%7Cnca-homepage-masthead-feature%7C4%7Cheading%7Chomepage%7Chomepage&itmt=1424418192478#itm=newscomau%7Chome%7Cnca-homepage-masthead-feature%7C4%7Cheading%7Chomepage%7Chomepage&itmt=1424418192724

maggie ...............



this was back in the mid-60s .............. before there was any kind of "must report". It was all on us, the teachers.

Plus, it was a Grammar School, as Cheshire refused to go Comprehensive for as long as they could.

So every girl in that school had passed the 11-plus ..................

we weren't dealing with possible educational problems, but possible abuse or no care.


I remember one girl ................. at the age of 14, she had been written off by most of the teachers ................. not because of education problems, she was actually bright.

But she had a boyfriend, had had one since she was 12, got as daring in ignoring the uniform as one could in those days, paid no attention in class, etc etc


All the teachers thought she was just killing time until she could leave school without incurring a penalty for her parents ................ paying no interest to any subject.

For some reason, I managed to capture her attention with some topic in biology, and she worked brilliantly for me .............. then she gradually began to talk to me


she lived with her grandmother, who was poorly, her father was home only occasionally, mother not in evidence for years ......................... the boyfriend paid her attention.


but no-one else was interested.



I left soon afterwards ............... but I do sometimes wonder how she turned out.

And this is progress? All the training and meetings, conferences etc etc don't seem to do any good, these tragedies still happen and if things don't change somehow we will still be reading about children being abused and murdered in years to come.

Lizx

I agree.
One of the simplest questions to ask an 11 year old is what the days of the week are, then the months of the year.
If they can't answer that right, you ask them when their birthday is, and the months either side. If they can't answer that, there's something wrong. This could be an undiagnosed learning disability or something more sinister.
Then you get on to casual 'chatting'. Many things come out of this.
I'm not a puritanical person, but I can read between the lines. When I worked in schools, l reported my 'findings', (I found 10 children with undiagnosed special needs in 1 month) but on-one wanted to know.
(I was only a LSA - with a degree in education) These children were, apparently, 'lost causes', and no money/resources were to be spent on them. They were also excluded from school when SATS were taken in case it affected the league tables.
I can see this in the school Blake went to - 'We've got our yearly quota of problem children - that's an end to it' -hence resources.
The same happens with social workers.

but that really was innocent bruising.




I had a couple of "I wonder....... ????" when I was teaching in Cheshire .............. these were girls in their early teens.


You can poke a little bit with that age, but if they don't want to say anything, you can't take it too far

I had to take my daughter to the doctor for a vaccination or something when she was about 2½ years old ............ she'd been walking since she was 9 months so was a little terror by that time.


I'd looked at her legs before we left the house, and saw how bruised they were, so I was more than a little worried about what the doc would say


He examined her, looked at her legs, looked at me, then grinned and said ...................

"just like a little boy's legs!"


and luckily, that's what it was .............. she was climbing anything and everything, running like mad, tripping, etc etc.

It shouldn't really need resources though should it?

It should be something that the community involves itself in rather than turning a blind eye to because they don't want to see the parents accused.

I'm afraid I had a 'second sense' - but was ignored, as it caused too much hassle. Some I 'sensed' when they were in primary school, some in secondary.
Of those I 'sensed' most strongly, 3 are dead, 6 are homeless, 4 are in prison and 3 are living at home on very strong drugs.
All in their late 20's, early 30's now.
Such a waste of life.

And it wasn't just the occasional dirty uniform - been there - got the tee-shirt - I was a 'normal' mum.
It was the never clean uniform, the bad behaviour (from some) the dirty pants, the way they answered casual questions, the constant need for reassurance etc etc So many indicators to something not being 'right', but no resources.
And the resources now are worse than they were previously

Sadly, abused children are often trained to not tell what goes on at home.

Probably the same case, Sharron, as my sister lives in your neck of the woods.
All you have to do is casually ask the child, and the way they respond speaks volumes.
'Oh, gosh, how did you get these bruises, Blake?'
'My daddy made them'

'Oh gosh, how did you get these marks on your legs?'
'What marks? Oh, I don't know'

Not exactly rocket science :-D

Heartbreaking to know how many chances were lost to save that dear little boy from such evil people ill treating him. I just hope the scumbags involved get waylaid, kidnapped and tortured then left to die alone. An eye for an eye......

Even that wouldn't be justice for Blake. May he rest in peace.

Lizxx

We had a case locally with the welly marks .

The parents of the child were very angry about it but what about the child with the marks thata re made by a stick?

I think it better that any mark that looks suspicious is investigated.

...so when he told his teacher that 'daddy made my bruises', that wasn't evidence?
Dreadful

And nobody has been prosecuted for his subsequent death. I think it was cited as 'lack of evidence', so the bully and his brother and the mother of the little boy all got away with it.

Words fail me on this case.

I am horrified at how little notice was made of those who reported his situation, who not only included the boy himself who told teachers that 'daddy made my bruises'. His grandmother, who could be 'accused' of having an interest in getting Blake removed, but even total strangers who knew nothing of the situation, but were worried enough for the boy's safety to report their concerns.

....and still, nothing was done.

My sister knows someone whose daughter, a few years back, arrived at school with wellies on and changed into sandals. A teacher noticed weals at the back of her legs, just below her knees. Social Services were called, the child was taken away from her parents. The weals disappeared. The parents couldn't explain how the weals had happened, they never struck her with anything. The little girl said her parents never hit her. Then someone used a braincell.
It was the wellies hitting the back of her (bare) legs.
The child was returned to her parents, after about a week, but the parents were monitored.

One ridiculous situation to another.....