Child protection social worker- ask me anything!

[NynaeveSedai]

With the recent rash of social worker related posts recently which have been FULL of frankly bollocks I thought I would offer to answer any questions.

Disclaimer - different local authorities do things slightly differently though national standards should be followed, and I'm in England so can't talk about the rest of the uk

How concerned would you be about children who live in a filthy and cluttered house without basic food hygiene?

I’m interested potentially in training to be a social worker (currently a teacher). How do you find your work/life balance? Is part time work available? Is it like teaching where you have to do lots of work at home? Do you find it difficult to switch off from difficult cases? Wondering if it would be a better fit with a family than teaching...

Are things getting worse or better in terms of what can be done for children in need?

What % of children who would be better off in care actually get taken into care, do you think?

What sort of things have you seen written on mumsnet that are not true? And can you tell us what the truth actually is please in those scenarios.

Exactly what degree of slatternliness warrants social services intervention? Is it worth panicking that leaving the dishes in the sink unwashed overnight would be ss worthy if anyone knew? Waiting til the morning to clean toilet after a splatter poo at night? How often to mop? Sweep? Hoover?

Also can people have their kids taken away for not believing in gay marriage and similar socially conservative religious positions or is that just scaremongering?

How concerned would you be about children who live in a filthy and cluttered house without basic food hygiene?

That would certainly warrant an assessment. Hopefully it would be a struggling parent who would need referring to mental health, parenting or some other support service to improve matters. Awful home conditions usually mean other issues going on.

I’m interested potentially in training to be a social worker (currently a teacher). How do you find your work/life balance? Is part time work available? Is it like teaching where you have to do lots of work at home? Do you find it difficult to switch off from difficult cases?

Work for a local authority that isn't struggling and you will be able to work your hours more or less within your working week. Work for a struggling authority and you will find yourself drowning.

Social work is woman heavy so lots of part time workers.

I do worry about difficult cases but I have a level of professional distance (cultivated over time I guess) that lets me switch off most of the time.

Also a CPP Social Worker.. interested to see how this goes

Are things getting worse or better in terms of what can be done for children in need?

Worse. All services are being cut to the bone, and our section 17 budgets have been slashed. We don't pay for parents bus fares to contact any more, very little is paid out that doesn't absolutely need to be.

What % of children who would be better off in care actually get taken into care, do you think?

Can't really answer that. I can say that the vast majority of our cases are not in care proceedings and of those that are - certainly not all result in children coming into care. It's rare to have a judge keep kids at home if we have got to the point of asking for removal but it does happen. Most children are better off with family, even if a relative rather than parent.

Thanks Nynaeve, that’s the impression I’m getting too and wasn’t sure if I was just paying more attention to the bad stories or if they were just getting more coverage. It’s very worrying.

I have a horrible neighbour. I am a bit concerned she will complain about me to SS saying I shout at DS. I do not. DS cannot talk. How would I prove my innocence?

This neighbour has made complaints about others before..

What sort of things have you seen written on mumsnet that are not true? And can you tell us what the truth actually is please in those scenarios

Examples I can think of from the last few days - if a mum has children in care then all subsequent pregnancies will be subject to child protection proceedings and probably removed at birth; that a father refusing to disengage will definitely lead to child protection proceedings and probably mean the parents will have to separate; that social workers visit children at school without telling parents first so that the children can't be prepped. There are more.

Basically, there is a legal threshold for a child protection plan and if the threshold isn't met then all involvement is voluntary. Lack of engagement will usually result in case being closed eventually in cases that don't meet child protection thresholds. Parents don't have to separate to keep their children unless the risks are very high. Social workers do unannounced visits to homes when there is a child protection plan but that's agreed by parents in the plan. They don't speak to children without consent of the parents if it's not an emergency.

What do you think of things like step up to social work or Frontline?

Former CP SW.

""Also can people have their kids taken away for not believing in gay marriage and similar socially conservative religious positions or is that just scaremongering?""

Scaremongering.

""What % of children who would be better off in care actually get taken into care, do you think?""

In my LA, it was around 90%, but lots should have went sooner. It would be more that should have been removed, if it could be done at Birth.

Is part time work available? Is it like teaching where you have to do lots of work at home? Do you find it difficult to switch off from difficult cases?

Yes there is part time available. There is a level of paperwork to be done at home, also sometimes unexpected late working. From what I've heard, SW is more stressful. I often wonder what happened to some of the children. A lot end up with MH/Emotional/Attachment issues and you know that there is going to be a level of disruption and bad choices in their life, because of that.

The funding for disturbed children isn't enough. It often takes for the young person to end up under CP, with their own baby, for them to get some help and it still isn't adequate.

A big part of training is reflective practice and encouraging safe ways of relieving stress.

Exactly what degree of slatternliness warrants social services intervention? Is it worth panicking that leaving the dishes in the sink unwashed overnight would be ss worthy if anyone knew? Waiting til the morning to clean toilet after a splatter poo at night? How often to mop? Sweep? Hoover?

Does any of that constitute neglect or significant harm? I think the answer is pretty clear.

Also can people have their kids taken away for not believing in gay marriage and similar socially conservative religious positions or is that just scaremongering?

That's scaremongering.

I’m not sorry to ask but what kind of concerns would SS have about poor parental relationships- arguing, nagging, shouting name calling etc? I know of a lot of this and wonder what level is acceptable?

I have a horrible neighbour. I am a bit concerned she will complain about me to SS saying I shout at DS. I do not. DS cannot talk. How would I prove my innocence?

Shouting at children wouldn't warrant an assessment even if it were true. If it did get to assessment they would visit you at home, speak to your health visitor and GP (with your consent) and rule out any worries.

DS is so beautiful in every way. I can't say too much about this hag next door. Too outing..

What do you think of things like step up to social work or Frontline?

I'm not keen on the one which is done over 18 months. Personally I think the current masters is intense enough already whilst allowing for sufficient reflective space and learning at a natural rate.

I’m not sorry to ask but what kind of concerns would SS have about poor parental relationships- arguing, nagging, shouting name calling etc? I know of a lot of this and wonder what level is acceptable?

Really, no level of emotional abuse is acceptable but that doesn't mean social workers can or would or should get involved in every family where it takes place.

All couples will argue at times and bickering is not fun but it's fairly common. Shouting and name calling are horrible but unless all the time and witnessed by professionals it's unlikely to ping our radar.

Nynaeve Thank you for answering me

What do you think of cases like these?How are these cases allowed to happen in your opinion? (not criticising you)

metro.co.uk/2018/08/30/baby-girl-died-after-being-left-in-car-seat-for-15-hours-by-drunk-parents-7897196/?ito=cbshare

Work for a local authority that isn't struggling and you will be able to work your hours more or less within your working week. Work for a struggling authority and you will find yourself drowning.

This worries me. I don't work for Children's services but have an insight into the amount of cases Sw have in the authority I work for.

What would you say to my 18 year old son who is considering a career in SW?

There is another thread running at the moment about child sex abuse in the Roma community in Glasgow and there are questions as to why social services seem to be turning a blind eye - have you ever experienced instances where you have been discouraged from investigating? What are your thoughts on this - do you believe that there is widespread and systemic child sexual exploitation?