...the review rightly emphasises that both children had the misfortune to be in the care of exceptionally cruel parents and step-parents.
And the double misfortune of being 'safeguarded' by hopeless incompetents.
So, why are you urging us to take out an onion for them? You cannot deny they failed at their basic function:
Social workers never saw Arthur on his own to hear from him what his life was like, and they didn’t get close to Star either...
Why not? And if they didn't, why did they ignore those who did their job for them..?
Star and Arthur’s other relatives could see their deterioration and made reports, including sending photos and videos of bruising to the children that were, after investigation, regarded by professionals as malicious.
Regarded by them with no apparent attempt to verify that? But it's OK, 'new systems' are needed (not, apparantly, any enquiry into why the existing ones aren't working...)!
...while huge attention is given to the need to create such new systems, the psychological and emotional impact of doing child protection work does not get enough attention.
Wait, what? Do you perhaps mean the huilt and anxiety when you fail so hard at your job that the child is murdered?
No. No, Reader, he doesn't...
A consistent finding in more than 40 years’ worth of child death inquiry reports is that what appeared to be straightforward tasks, such as sending a photograph to another professional, simply didn’t get done. This requires us to explain the unexplainable – and why, time and time again, well-intentioned professionals can’t explain even to themselves their inaction in the face of evidence of marks and injuries.
Well, would you believe it's because the poor dears are just so oberwhelmed?
...careful attention must be given to the impact that the stress and anxiety that pervades the work has on professionals’ capacities to think, or not think clearly.
I cannot fathom how someone could write this without a single twinge of shame.
12 years of research, based on observing face-to-face encounters between social workers and families, shows that those who fill professionals with the most dread and anxiety are parents hostile to involvement. Faced with threats, intimidation or passive aggression in parents not answering the door, the intense anxiety professionals experience clouds their judgement and makes it extremely difficult to think about and tune in to the children, or to even recognise that they have failed to do so.
Perhaps, then, that term 'professionals' is the wrong one to use?
So what will help them, if all that expensive training won't? Is it more money, perchance? Of course it is.
The more compassion social workers are shown, the more money the government invests and time practitioners are given to think and understand how they are relating to children, the less likely it will be that these tragic deaths will occur in future.
Who should show them 'compassion', Harry? It's not going to be me, I can tell you that!
Julia, Hear,Hear!
ReplyDeleteIf I could, I would fire every last social(ist) worker and disband all their departments. They are a malign influence in society.
Until each proven incompetent is fired (losing pension entitlements too), they will never have any incentive to do their job properly because there's no downside for failure.
ReplyDeleteIt's called 'carrot and stick' - the 'carrot' is the job/salary/pension, the 'stick' is getting fired if you screw up. That's how the real world works and so should their fantasy land. Applies to all public servants, not only social workers - they're all as bad as each other.