My kids are in long term foster care and have been in care since May 2012. I get 6 times a year court ordered contact. Since my children have been in long term fc my DD (nearly 10) has missed several contacts. Then the middle of last year our social worker at the time became so overwhelmed with the job she started failing in her responsibilities. I went to management and she left the job. She gave my DDs carers the wrong contact details in June last year and she missed the contact. So we were at this point owed 3 hours for contact. We were took on by another sw and within a couple of months she found she couldn't work with my DS (nearly 13) so he was given a male sw . My DD's sw was absolutely fantastic to start with. She was encouraging me to do assessments to get my DD home. She was ringing me daily and Then we got to Christmas .
Christmas contact was arranged and we were given an hour less contact coz of the contact team messing up dates. I complained and my DS's sw said to take the contact and they would make the hour up . My DD decided apparently she was finding contact hard over xmas so she told her sw who arranged with me to do the contact herself the second week in January. This week came and went. Despite me complaining to her numerous times. I spent a whole day ringing SS and got fobbed off , everyone was in meetings or engaged . Management won't even take my calls. The receptionist just kept trying to get me to speak to my SW and put me through to her. At that point I had a contact in place for 28th Jan and I knew her plan was to hold it out til then. I told her this and she said it wasn't.
So the 28th Jan came. I asked the contact centre manager to make sure both DC were coming to contact at the cinema . She said she would check and get back to me. She didn't. Day of contact came and the worker couldnt get in touch with DD's carers so assumed they were on their way. Then she said my DS was in respite and neither his own carers nor the respite carer had any idea contact was happening. So his SW hadn't informed anyone and my DD didn't turn up either despite repeated calls to her carer. I phoned and text her SW and no response. Then halfway through contact the worker said my Sister and my Nephew wasnt allowed at contact and they had to leave! The sw had took them off the contact even though it was agreed by the LAC reviewing officer that contact was family every time now. We spent half an hour with the worker on her phone backwards and forwards with calls to confirm this. This ruined contact for us all.
So now I'm owed 9 hours with my DD and an hour with my DS.
The LA have broke a care order , I'm ordered to see my DD 6 times a year , last year I saw her 4 ! When I told the SW she tried to tell me my contact was reduced to 4 times anyway , I told her No , the LA wanted 4 times but it was agreed with the previous sw that I'm a positive in my 's lives and she was happy to keep it at 6. She then backtracked and agreed it was 6.
I've not seen my DD since October. My DC dont get sibling contact so they haven't seen each other either.
I wrote off a 6 page email to the chief of our LA SS Monday morning. I got a reply back saying that he would look into it but haven't heard anything since. No contact with the SW's. No management involvement. I work full time now 8-4pm and can't answer my phone during work hours. I want to take it back to court but I would probably lose my job taking time off because I've only been there 3 weeks. I feel like I'm banging my head against a brick wall whilst losing my DD. Shes been lied to a lot during this and atm they keep telling me shes not in a great place and shes playing up at school and feeling really unsettled. Shes been moved a lot and shes struggling to attach to anyone and then they do this. I feel like they are trying to mess my DD up even more. Surely if a child is struggling with attachments the last thing you do is take away her parents ?!
I have never missed a contact myself , I fight really hard to stay in my kids lives. But I feel like I'm being pushed to give up with my DD. I won't because I haven't come this far to give up. When I told the SW I was looking to get legal advice on this she told me to do what I've got to do so is she pushing me to go back to court ? she's changed so much the last few months. She was pushing me to get my DD home at one point and now shes pushing her out my life . I just dont know what's going on and what to do next ? I feel like I'm damned if I do and damned if I don't. I'm trying to better myself , getting a job and getting the money to get a new house for my children to come home but every step I take I get knocked back 6. What do I do now?
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Where do I go from here ? Social Services. (long sorry!)
mumgointhroughtorture · 05/02/2017 10:10
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