The Independent London Newspaper
This failure to return baby prolonged couple’s agony
Published: 4 May, 2012
• THE tragic case of Rohan Wray and Chana al-Alas has highlighted the way Islington social workers fail to act in the best interests of children (Couple united with daughter after nightmare that began with death of baby, April 27).
Not only did they act disgracefully in failing to return the second child for a further four months after the parents being found not guilty of the death of their first child but they failed to fully understand the consequences of any delay for a child at a crucial stage in her emotional development.
This, though, is not the first time that the council has refused to accept a judgment where there is overwhelming evidence of no crime having taken place.
So we will not be comforted by the usual recommendations for the need to “work together and share information”.
As a support group active in Islington for almost a decade, we have seen at first hand the devastation such unwarranted and heavy-handed intervention has caused.
In supporting a family through a criminal case we were not surprised that the judge threw it out before even hearing the defence, such was the flimsiness of the case for the prosecution, but we were very alarmed to witness Islington social workers preventing family reunification for months.
Although common sense did prevail in the end it was not before more damage had been done to the family.
Furthermore, in prolonging the agony of innocent parents the child’s best interests are not served and there is a very high risk of further trauma being inflicted on a young mind.
TREVOR JONES
National co-ordinator,
Parents Against Injustice (PAIN)
Hanley Road, N4
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Yet again Islington's social workers harm children
I write to echo Mr Jones’s sentiments and concerns with regard to Islington’s social workers’ consistently poor record in failing to prioritise children’s welfare and losing sight of children’s best interest amidst administrative and personnel turnover chaos.
Saddest of all, these unnecessarily harmed families are precluded the means to recover from trauma by the fact that the social services complaints system – at the moment the only potential avenue of redress and healing available to these families – simply acts as an endorsement of the pain, hurt and injustice. This only compounds the harm.
Under the current system, the council is defendant, judge and jury. So-called “independent” investigators and panel members are remunerated by the council and briefed lopsidedly.
Only a truly independent social services tribunal would have the authority to challenge social workers’ lack of accountability, and highlight failures so that these can be addressed rather than covered up.
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