I
f Human Service Minister Irfan Sabir is not willing to resign over his department’s bungled handling of an internal report into the death of a four-year-old girl, maybe he should resign for his performance the past two days, after the story broke.
The performance included actively avoiding the media, holding an irritatingly vacuous news conference, blaming the previous Progressive Conservative government and forming a bogus all-party investigative panel to distract attention from his performance as minister.
At the heart of the story is Serenity, the little First Nations girl who died while in government-supervised “kinship care” in 2014. The cause of death was a traumatic head injury, but she also suffered from a disturbing list of abuse including hypothermia, catastrophic malnutrition and genital bruising.
Royal Commission into SA child protection demands hundreds of changes after pedophile’s horrific crimes
- Details
- Category: Child Protection South Australia media and newspaper articles
- Created: Monday, 08 August 2016 16:37
- Written by AAP
South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill has urged voters to trust in his ability to fix child protection in the state, after a royal commission demanded hundreds of changes to the tragedy-plagued system.
But the opposition says Mr Weatherill is inextricably linked to the serious failings identified and has no choice but to resign.
Another SA carer arrested over child abuse
- Details
- Category: Child Protection South Australia media and newspaper articles
- Created: Sunday, 20 November 2016 16:31
- Written by AAP
Another review of South Australia's scandal-plagued child protection system has been ordered after the arrest of a residential care worker who has been accused of abusing young children.
Education and Child Development Minister Susan Close confirmed the arrest of the man and says while she can't comment on the individual case an independent legal firm has been engaged to look into the department's employment and screening processes.
The man was believed to have been among 25 carers 'red-flagged' and suspended for a time after a 2014 inquiry into the children protection system but, along with several others, later cleared and allowed to return to work.
Premier backed down on child protection agency
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- Category: Child Protection South Australia media and newspaper articles
- Created: Wednesday, 22 June 2016 16:26
- Written by Meredith Booth - The Australian
Forcing the South Australian Labor government to establish a stand-alone child protection agency, with a new chief executive with specialist credentials, will help stem an exodus of social workers, the Public Service Association says.
The Weatherill government yesterday bowed to an interim royal commission recommendation announcing the creation of a new child protection department, splitting those responsibilities from education.
What is the "Right to Lie" case?
- Details
- Category: Child Protection USA media and newspaper articles
- Created: Thursday, 01 December 2016 22:05
- Written by Alicia Bayer - The Inquisitor
COURT CASE CLAIMS SOCIAL WORKERS HAVE IMMUNITY FROM PERJURY CHARGES IF THEY LIE TO REMOVE CHILDREN FROM THEIR HOMES [VIDEO]
A court case known as the “Right to Lie” case would establish whether social workers are legally immune from perjury charges if they lie to the courts in order to remove children from their families — and it is now one step away from the Supreme Court.
Case number 15-55563, also known as Hardwick v. Vreeken or the “Right to Lie” case, was heard in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in October. The case is an extension of a long-running court battle between a California woman and her two daughters against the child welfare system in Orange County, California.
NT DCF is toxic and repressive, say staff
- Details
- Category: Child Protection Northern Territory media and newspaper articles
- Created: Sunday, 21 August 2016 09:51
- Written by Erwin Chlanda - Alice Springs News
They also refer to the suicide of an ex-staffer about two years ago.
The comments coincide with the Prime Minister’s appointment of a Royal Commission into detention of young people in the NT which will also examine the child protection system.
DCF said about the death on August 6 that it “extends its condolences to the family, friends and colleagues during this difficult time. As this is a personal matter, the Department has no further comment.”
The suspected suicide occurred a few days after the staff member was seen crying in the office.
One of our sources says that the CEO from Darwin flew to Alice to address the staff about the tragic event, and managers have told staff that talking amongst each other, or to outsiders about the death would be “disrespectful”.
“The department in Alice Springs is toxic, retributive, and unless you’re part of that repressive gang you’re in trouble,” says that source.
There is a massive turnover and “destruction” of staff: To survive, “they keep their heads down, their mouth shut and work as hard as they can to get out of this place.”
“Leaders” have strategies which put staff into no-win situations: They are given case management deadlines which are unrealistic and unachievable and the inevitable failure to meet these deadlines is recorded in the staff files.
If a staff member then wants to apply for transfer to another department, this information can be given to the interview panel, which can also obtain references from members of the “inner circle” –the DCF team leaders who are in a position to put damaging information before the panel.
“This hugely constrains getting work elsewhere,” says the source. That in turn binds the lower level staff to the DCF and increases their vulnerability to bullying and exploitation.
The fact that few complaints are lodged – almost exclusively because of fear of retribution, say our sources – is commonly cited by the upper echelons as proof that there are no problems.
DCF says it “has a cultural organisational framework that outlines the core values of respect, courage, integrity and trust that underpin behaviour in the workplace.
“The department values and invests in its staff and any complaint is taken seriously and investigated.
“The Department encourages staff that may be experiencing difficulties to report their concerns and utilise the support services offered.
“If you are aware of any staff that may have a complaint or concern, please direct them to any manager or Department of Children and Families complaints.”
But our source says use of ‘divide and conquer’ methods are standard in this “very punitive organisation”, isolating people and groups: “Different groups are called together and given bits of information and then are being told not to talk about it to other staff,” says the contact.
“Yelling at staff, imposing unreasonable workloads, isolating staff, spreading rumours, encouraging them not to engage with particular workers who are a ‘bad influence,’ putting people down, talking to them like to a school-child, rolling eyes, dressing someone down in a public forum, wagging finger, eye glaring” are all in the arsenal of the “oppressive clique,” says the source.
“Stifling debate amongst the staff by declaring matters confidential, discouraging workers from having support people with them when they are in a performance management meeting, or pretending it is a case management meeting in which a support person would not be needed” are among of the strategies.
While the massive staff turnover is expensive in financial terms, the costs to the clients – the children – is inestimable. While it is vital that the case workers build up a relationship of trust and understanding, the 400-odd children in The Centre who have been taken away from their families are faced with three or four different case workers in a year.
Payments of up to $1000 a week per child are being made to carers, says our source, money that could be spent on helping parents to set up a functioning household.
Child Safety sibling case drags on for three years
- Details
- Category: Child Protection Queensland media and newspaper articles
- Created: Friday, 11 November 2016 07:00
- Written by Emmaline Stigwood - The Courier-Mail
A JUDGE reviewing a child- protection case for two young siblings has criticised the Department of Child Safety for regularly changing its mind about who should have custody, with the case dragging on for more than three years.
District Court Judge Helen Bowskill said the sister and brother, aged 9 and 8, had been subject to revolving temporary custody orders since a child-protection officer first lodged a court application in 2012 and would now have to wait longer because of errors made by a magistrate.
Queensland child safety staff stood down
- Details
- Category: Child Protection Queensland media and newspaper articles
- Created: Wednesday, 23 November 2016 08:55
- Written by Jamie McKinnell - AAP
The jobs of a dozen Queensland child safety staff are on the line after a report exposed "serious errors of judgment" in the handling of the case of dead toddler Mason Jet Lee.
Child Safety Minister Shannon Fentiman on Wednesday revealed three staff had been immediately stood down on full pay and a further nine were facing an ethical standards investigation into the matter.
An initial report into the case identified shortcomings at the Caboolture Child Safety Service Centre but made no finding of systemic failures across the department.
More Articles ...
- Police Commissioner calls bulls--t on child protection stolen generation claims
- Mason Jet Lee: Child protection staff stood down over 'errors of judgement' after report into toddler's death
- Foster carer blames Department of Children and Families for teenagers’ predicament
- UK Children, Families and Social Services cases
- The Baptism
- Dandridge DCS case manager charged with filing false reports in child abuse investigation
- NSW Child removal rate rise slammed
- COAG recommends national registration of social workers
- Dozens in CPS have criminal records
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Child Protection Australia media articles
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