SASW Manager responds to Liam Fee verdict

SASW manager Trisha Hall said: "This week the verdict on the killing in 2014 of a two year old little boy, Liam Fee from Glenrothes, Fife, hit the public domain as the court case concluded. His mother and her partner were convicted of his murder and will be sentenced in early July. This toddler was abused and finally killed by the people who should have loved, nurtured and supported him. Scotland, and indeed the entire UK held its breath in horror. There were two other children in the house who had been subjected to horrific abuse and unimaginable mental and physical cruelty.

"As the professional membership organisation for social workers, SASW, (part of BASW UK) faced busy days of media attention. We would and could not comment on the specifics of any tragic case such as this, as a thorough investigation needs to take place first in the form of a Significant Case Review (SCR), which has been commissioned by the Fife Child Protection Committee.

"We have to await the outcome of this review to know what could or should have been done differently, and no doubt, recommendations for action will be suggested, with the aim of reducing the likelihood of reoccurrence of such horrific events.

"The public is no doubt tired of hearing the mantra “lessons will be learnt” but learn we must. And in the process of finding out where things have gone so terribly wrong, we must also acknowledge what we are getting right. For, if you want to support children, you also have to support the workforce.

"Our response within a number of TV, Radio and newspaper interviews has attempted to focus on the wider picture and the context in which social workers are doing their job. We knew from our own BASW research on “The state of social work” in 2012 how pressurised workers were, and four years down the line little has changed.  Social workers tend to have excessive caseloads, and this is getting worse as the preventative referral options which were available in the form of structured groups for parents and toddlers, nurture hubs etc. run by the voluntary sector are disappearing as the funding has been cut.

"Local authorities in Scotland have had a budget freeze for seven years. While they may not have not reduced the number of child protection social workers, other measures had to be taken which have affected the work; “hot desking” and so called “agile working”, which means less time for interaction and discussion with colleagues and InterVision which can be as useful as supervision. Recording and reporting, sitting behind a computer in administrative tasks, still dominates time available.  Long serving workers have in some authorities been offered early retirement severance packages which have helped budgets but have seen a lot of expertise leave the department. Managers are under severe pressure and supervision, reflective practice opportunities is not always regular. Training budgets have been slashed. Even on sponsored training events which we as SASW have supported, attendance can be low as registered social workers don’t attend at the last minute because of urgent pressure at work, or sometimes simply as travel costs are not allowed. Our national CP info hub, WithScotland, has lost its funding. Neglect is an area which remains so difficult to assess, so regular training is essential for social workers and colleagues.

"All this and more is taking place while the need for services which has increased significantly. Many of our communities are severely affected by the impact of austerity measures, and poverty is a reality in the lives of at least one in four children. There is sometimes trauma which has been present throughout generations of families. Research tells us inequality in society is the cause of many evils, we know much of what needs to change, but as a people are not acting on it. It is time for a dramatic overhaul. If the system is indeed broken, should we continue to try and fix it, or decide that enough is truly enough and engage in a solution focused approach which may have less systems to feed, but frees workers up to do what we as social workers were trained to do: make a relationship with a child, the family and the community they are part of.

"There are many examples of brilliant work across the country and we must be proud of ourselves as social workers and hold on to all the good work and outcomes for people that we know we help them achieve. We should also make a strong stand as a profession and be vocal about what we know the direction of travel should be in. This remains a unique and brilliant job, and we must ensure we inform the change needed. Both the experiences of workers and the lived experiences of families, who have been, or are in receipt of our services, need to be included in any review. We need a culture change, not a systems change. This is a public health issue and must be resourced as such.

"The cabinet secretary announced a review of child protection in February of this year which is expected to report in December 2016. In Scotland our government support the work, we have a great policy in “Getting it right for evert child” which has provided a common language. The minister with responsibility for social work has met with social workers and social care practitioners in regular events across Scotland and wants to listen. There is a sound vision and a direction overseen by a Social Services Strategic Forum where SASW is represented. However we are not getting the translation of that vision on the ground right, if we can’t resource our workforce. Sadly many social workers have said they feel traumatised at times as they go about their duties, and try to keep the code of practice and ethics alive in their own heads, and continue to believe in “doing good” and making a difference. SASW is a partner in what we hope will be an exciting project match funded by the European Social Care Research Council with prof Viv Cree and colleagues at the University of Edinburgh, with the SSSC and others around “changing child protection”, we hope to set up regional communities of reflective practice for social workers.

"We have received many comments on the recent publicity and our role in it, and many social workers have thanked us for speaking out when they themselves are saying they are fearful to do so.

"And then someone said 'this must be really good publicity for SASW', and stopped me in my tracks….Yes, we want to be able to represent the voice of social work and social workers across the country, and we need members to make it a credible voice. We need you as members to ask your colleagues to join us. But why does it need the death of a child, and the no doubt troubled lifespan of two other children to allow social work to take centre stage? Let’s help change that balance, so that we are respected and included as the unique profession we are. Be strong in your work, and your convictions that brought you to social work. We will try our best to speak out for you. Come to our SASW Sessions - we will see you there."

Click here to listen to Trisha on Radio 4 Today (1:51)