Does The Department Of Social Services Work Or Is It Broken?

In a recent speech communication at the Institute of Public Policy Research, Education secretary Michael Gove started his spoken language past saying: "I want to begin with an access. The country is currently failing in its duty to keep our children safe." This comes at a time when local potency cuts are at an all-time high and staff morale at an all-fourth dimension low.

Whether you agree or disagree with Mr. Gove's voice communication, it should exist acknowledged that this is one of the rare occasions in which a politician has started a argue in relation to child protection that has not been motivated by a knee wiggle reaction to a tragedy or serious instance review. It is only by having kid protection on the agenda that we can start a dialogue and a critical debate, and begin to ask the tough questions that demand to exist addressed.

Children protection is a peculiarly emotive subject both for the wider society and the professionals working in this arena. Kid protection social workers have recovered from iii high profile child deaths in most as many years and their residuum effects, expressed as a culture of fear, go on to haunt the psyche and professional person identity of social workers and social work profession.

Social workers involved in loftier profile cases of child death were forced into hiding due to the extreme and relentless pursuit of some media which in some cases were tantamount to dehumanising hate campaign confronting individual social workers. Such a witch chase and scapegoating has no doubt left the social work psyche vulnerable and frail, particularly for those working in child protection services. This combined with a climate of cuts and chronic lack of resources, likewise every bit multitude of other pressures and limited resources were also reported and acknowledged past the recent APPG hearing which examined the current country of social work. 1 witness stated that the social work profession is in danger of losing a whole generation of social workers who feel current weather inside local authorities are "not what I signed upwards for".

So in today's debate we wish to examine the state of social piece of work in general and child protection social piece of work in particular and would like to ask if social piece of work and child protection are cleaved systems?

And then dorsum to Mr. Gove, what exactly does the Education secretarial assistant think the problem is and how should it be fixed? Is social work part of the problem or part of the solution? What is the style forwards and who decides? Beneath are some of the key points every bit highlighted by Gove at IPPR on Friday:

Children are non existence put get-go:

"Nosotros put the rights of biological parents ahead of vulnerable children – even when those parents are incapable of leading their ain lives safely," stated Gove. "When we practice arbitrate it is often too late. When children are removed from homes where they're at take a chance they're often returned prematurely and exposed to danger all over again."

'Intrusive and inefficient bureaucracy'

"Instead of concentrating properly on the appalling fail and abuse visited on children by those they know or who are in the family'south immediate circumvolve, nosotros have been pre-occupied by the much smaller risk of strangers causing harm and in so doing have established an intrusive and inefficient bureaucracy, which creates a false feeling of security for parents while alienating volunteers and eroding personal responsibility."

"Optimism Bias"

Gove claimed that social workers were all too frequently being affected past "optimism bias" Gove added "for perfectly understandable reasons", he noted the difficultly social workers face in these situations and claimed that social workers can be reluctant to challenge the behaviour of the developed peculiarly when they are trying to win the trust of those individuals.

'Social workers de-sensitised to squalor'

"Social workers – partly because so much of their fourth dimension is spent in uniquely difficult circumstances many of us volition never run across – tin can become desensitised to the squalor they see and less shockable overall. Which is why it'due south up to the residue of the states to show leadership," Gove said.

"Dorsum Social Workers"

At that place were other points that most social workers would agree with such as calling on wider club to "back social workers who rescue children from homes where they are left in their own urine and faeces for days, left to forage for scraps of food and drink and denied warm, clean bedding and wearable." Or when he notes that there is no right amount of children in care "merely a right solution for every child in demand".

Failing local authorities

"Also many local government are failing to meet acceptable standards for child safeguarding. Likewise many children are left for far besides long in homes where they are exposed to appalling neglect and criminal mistreatment." Stated Gove. He later pointed out that "Afterward 160 Ofsted inspections of local regime to meet how effectively they safeguarded children less than 40 per cent got to a level we could be happy with – merely three per cent of local authorities were considered outstanding and just 36 per cent good. 45 per cent were ranked at Ofsted grade iii – what we phone call adequate but everyone now recognises is a situation which is non practiced enough and requires comeback – while 16 per cent were inadequate – simply nowhere virtually good enough."

Therefore, examining some of the cardinal points as highlighted by Mr. Gove'south speech nosotros wish to explore some of the following questions:

Are local authorities failing?
Do nosotros put the rights of biological parents alee of vulnerable children?
Do nosotros often intervene likewise late?
Do we remove children and/or return them prematurely to their previous surroundings? And does this expose the children to the same old problems and "dangers"?
What should happen to help ensure that society understands and supports social work?
What needs to be done to address some of the complex challenges of social piece of work?

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