I have been reading this thread with interest. I have three children born from 1990 through to 2012. The key to tracking and safeguarding children at risk does not lie with this 'new' idea it begins the moment babies are born from the first midwife visit and HV visit then moving on to the baby clinic and beyond.
It is too late by the time they reach A&E. Since my first dd came along the level of involvement from various professionals has declined drastically. It is partially due to NHS cuts in health workers that more children go unnoticed and become harmed through neglect and abuse.
The amount of contact I had with my first dd is incredibly different to what I have experienced this year. 1990, I had to attend baby clinic weekly and if I didn't there were enough HV to visit and check to see if we were ok. My dd had many compulsory check ups throughout the year including 6 month, 8 month, 1 year then 18 months and 2 and 3 year checks.
With dd2 who came along in 2006 most of these check ups were stopped due to cuts and we thought it was a shame as you like to have the little red book with all the developmental bits and pieces in, I know I did. The flip side of this is vulnerable children are far far more likely to slip through the net of the professionals who are supposed to be watching out for them. It is not the fault of these hard working people and it is easy to see how concerns which are reported are left on the system and not linked because no one is actually regularly seeing any children vulnerable or not.
2012 I have been to the clinic once and never heard from anyone since. It was generally accepted as a third time mum I didn't really need to go, I was actually told this and now there are no milestone check ups as such in our area. We may book a 1 year check if we have any concerns. I really do not need to go to baby clinic and if I did I would but what about parents who are not coping and children and babies showing possible signs of abuse. Clinic and home visits were useful to maintain contact but these are non existent after your second or third baby.
No one wants people intruding on their home life, I hated all the visits shortly after having a baby but accepted it as important for my child. Now there is little or no involvement at all. Instead of spending so much money on this latest scheme surely it is better to put the money into preventative or early detection plans designed to flag up signs of neglect and abuse? This may be a deterrent for certain potential culprits and save children at risk. Children who are at risk could potentially be noticed sooner.
Even at school it is not compulsory to have your child weighed and for them to partake in the regular health checks. You can sign a form to confirm you do not want your child checked. If a child is being physically abused of course the parent is not going to allow them to be checked.
This is simply a pattern I as a parent have noticed over the years and it is all down to money and lack of staffing. There are definitely situations where mistakes can be made and as posters have mentioned abuse is suspected when in fact there are medical issues. So surely keeping track early on would prevent this also?
I personally have first hand experience of being on the other side and falling prey to ss assumptions. Although in my situation it was rectified fairly quickly and we received a heartfelt apology,it tends to linger all your life and I can completely understand apprehension regarding the latest plans.
Creating a support network from cradle through school is the answer. And better training to ensure parents who have no need to worry and feel able to voice concerns is important. There does however need to be a certain amount of compulsory check ups and developmental appointments in order to maintain contact with children, getting parents to be on board with this could of course be the challenge. You just want to get on with your life. But I for one think so many awful situations we have read about in the last few years could have been prevented through better communication and regular professional involvement.