Abusive social worker removed from practice

A former social worker at Birmingham City Council, Angela Turner, has been removed from the Social Care Register for allegations including inappropriate and abusive language towards a service user. While employed as a registered manager at Elms Residential Unit by Birmingham Council, she told a service user: “my dogs are cleaner than you”. She also called him a “bastard” and frequently told him “you’ve pissed yourself”. Ms Turner failed to ensure the boy had adequate care during the night and removed a kettle from him unjustifiably – which the GSCC conduct committee branded ‘unkind, unnecessary and certainly inappropriate’. She also slapped another service user on the hand. Ms Turner, who did not attend the hearing but sent a letter saying she had not renewed her registration and was therefore not a registered social worker, failed to hold supervision meetings at the required frequency. When interviewed for the investigation, she conceded that although supervision meetings should have taken place monthly, they rarely occurred. She failed to hold regular team meetings or enforce the no-smoking policy. A CRB check on a member of staff was not dealt with properly, placing service users at potential risk of harm. Turner also failed to investigate an allegation of racism from one staff member to another. The committee said that her failures demonstrated that she was “comprehensively unfit to be a member of the social care profession”. They decided that Turner should be removed from the Social Care Register with immediate effect.