Social Services won’t even look into my complaint

[Youaintmymuvva]

I don’t know where else I can go? I have a long list of serious complaints resulting in my son now on a child arrangement with his dad and grandmother. It includes ignoring domestic abuse, drug use, alienation, not having a thorough assessment, not being assessed by the guardian, not taking evidence from other professionals and just from my ex and his mother, ignoring disability act and not actioning reasonable adjustments and so on. Making a serious conclusion without involving or speaking or meeting with health professionals resulting in being told I am not able to be a parent because of it, when it isn’t true. Accepting false allegations at face value without investigating. Documenting supervision reports falsely and stating the opposite happened. I raised just the one issue as I felt it was the most simple issue to raise and that is claiming I put my son at risk of medical harm by breastfeeding him whilst on on medication. I had in fact followed a treatment plan given by the perinatal team. Despite giving the medical notes and confirmation letters from clinicians to reiterate I had accepted those recommendations and that breastfeeding was always top of mind, that I had not put my son at any risk of harm etc the social worker continued to maintain that I had put my son at risk and I cannot understand why this would be. There were other medical issues that they raised incorrectly and completely dismissed that medical evidence I provided them addressing these specifics and affirming that my statements were true and they had made a mistake. It made no difference. They manager, their manager and even director of the LA service won’t even entertain the complaint at all. They maintain that I had legal counsel and that I had not had permission for an appeal to be heard so that’s that. I protested that the final conclusion was never mentioned at all prior so how could we have fought back, and the appeal process is not to fight back re what the judge was given to rely upon in the first instance. Yet the fact remains due to these actions from the social worker, the false reason that my son isn’t with me won’t be amended or even looked at, it’s not an opinion, it’s a fact that had resulted in this consequence that I had proven was incorrect yet remained as ‘fact’. They mark their own homework and I just can’t believe this can happen. Is there really nowhere I can raise this serious poor practice? I can’t understand why a social worker would do this or that nobody in the system will even listen let alone look into what has happened. Is this it?

I can’t understand why a social worker would do this or that nobody in the system will even listen let alone look into what has happened. Is this it?

Yeah, this is one of those situations where I'd live to hear the other side before commenting

Just use your lawyer. No one here can comment because we’ve only got your word for it and only have your side of the story. Use your lawyer to fight it, speak to your MP about your treatment if you feel it was unjust.

This

Can you look on the family rights site?,they have a helpline no and will be able to point you in right direction perhaps.
I believe you
I have been there/similar ill treatment . You really need proper advocacy. X

Do you have a lawyer?

Is your housing situation stable and you are working?

I was put in care. They usually don't do that lightly.

What access do you have to your child? It's a very long list of complaints! Are you sure they don't regard them as a vexatious campaign?

Your child is 7.
How long has he been in the custody of your MIL?

Your opening post is a bit confusing on second reading. Do you mean your child has been removed because of these reasons or are these things you're complaining about?

It sounds like you're hoping to use the social services complaint procedure to get the judge's decision set aside, which isn't how it works. I agree with you needing legal advice.

If you’re in care proceedings they can’t take a complaint as any issues should be addressed through solicitors. Are you still in care proceedings? If so all they evidence need to be with your solicitor and they will not be able to accept it as fact within that

ifnnot you can make a complaint to the LA if they do not accept this then you can go to stage 2/3 until it’s looked at by someone external.

you could also go to social work England but you just need to be careful not to undermine any case. I would list out all facts with evidence

Why is he not in your custody part of the time?

What is their argument?

Are you obsessing about one small part that you can refute and ignoring the bigger picture?
Is there honestly nothing else that you've done?
You need to stop with the detail and look at the bigger picture and put your child first and cooperate with social services.

I get you're angry but the opening post is a slightly confusing rant
If you are going at them the same way then it'll be putting them off and not helping your case.

If this is the poster I'm thinking of @PicaK is correct. It's understandably an upsetting situation for the OP, but it's not just the bf meds thats an issue sadly.
Apologies if not op, but a very similar situation.

Are you still receiving legal advice? What do they suggest your next steps should be?

Can you take a breath. Have a break from what sounds like a relentless and distressing situation. Then find someone who specialises in family rights. Decide what you want to achieve and let them help you formulate a clear plan.

In the meantime, your DS is presumably safe. Do you have any contact with him? When you speak, do you keep calm and upbeat?

It is very very difficult to remove a child from a parents care. The good enough bar is set frighteningly low.

So it's been through court and proceedings have concluded? I'm very sorry and I know you have your perspective but it's simply not possible to get all the way through care proceedings without the evidence being rigorously tested (by your barrister I would hope!) and simple mistakes like the breastfeeding on medication claim could not be used as evidence.

If you want to make a complaint they MUST respond to it and if you aren't satisfied then you need to go through the stage 2 and 3 complaints procedure. But it is unlikely to change the outcome of the care proceedings.

They haven't 'marked their own homework'.

They took their 'homework' to court and presented it to the judge. Your legal representatives were able to challenge the 'homework', and the judge 'marked' it.

You need to speak to your lawyer about your options, this is a legal.process and they will know your full situation.

Try citizens advice for an independent view. No one here can comment on if your child is safe with you or not.

If this is court ordered they are correct that you need to appeal/go back to court. If you had counsel they should have ensured the judge had all the evidence? If the evidence wasn't available that could potentially be a ground for appeal or for making a fresh application- you need legal advice

They don't always & they can get out of a complaint where the issue has been heard in court. They did this to us actually as family members where contact had been heard in court. They wouldn't listen to our view that the social worker openly lied in the report, they just didn't care that she didn't even show up in court.
They usually stay just this side of the law but they are often an appalling service & definitely not one to get on the "wrong side" of because it's a very long way back.

@Youaintmymuvva I'm sorry this is happening to you there's literally no support in the system for parents who have their children removed, & courts do rely upon the evidence of social workers, they have to I believe.
There's an organisation called the Family Rights Group, for people whose children are involved with social services, I'd try them.
Again I believe that the SS can do good work, but they can also do shoddy work too.
It's simply not true that the court & these kind of proceedings are separate, the SW will present their evidence but don't believe that the court will question that evidence because they don't, not in a meaningful way.
I worked in SS for a few years & can say I could not believe some of the Social workers, some were great but not all, & those weren't helpful to families.

I went through very similar.

you have to be a dog with a bone.

literally

you will get many many people doubting what you’re saying.

i did

three years after the fact I won at a stage three complaints panel. The head of service apologised to my face. The director of services had to write a formal apology to le. I was awarded compensation.

now, for the complaint: have you said the magic words ‘I wish for this to be recorded as a stage one formal complaint’ - because without those magic words it’s unlikely they will open a complaint. Even with those magic words yoh may need to keep doing if his a while. My la took an entire YEAR before they would finally open a formal complaint.

at the end of stage one I was told they had nothing to answer for (stage one is literally their own people within their own organisation, having a quick flick through the file and giving themselves a Pat on the back and telling you to go away.

this is when you use the magic words ‘ I now wish to escalate my complaint to a stage two formal complaint’

this is where an outside person comes in and investigates and interviews and produces a report.

if you are still not happy yoh then use the magic words ‘I now wish to make a stage three formal complaint’ this is where a panel of at least three people who have nothing to do with the LA look at everything.

thd panel I went to wiped the floor with the LA - Igof a verdict from them on thd day, such was their concern and what they found.

m it’s harrowing and it’s arduous - but you have to understand for many LA’s complaints are a war of attrition: they rely on people being so damaged, so exhausted and so beaten down from having to go through their process that they just give up and go sit in the corner the LA would prefer them to be in,

good luck

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/5145385-to-feel-anxious-initiating-court

Your other thread gives more detail, and said you’d got your MP involved — is this still ongoing?

It’s more than possible to get through the court process without the evidence being ‘rigorously tested’