Rather terrifying article about social workers attempting to take baby from its mother as soon as its born.

[Callisto]

It was in the Sunday Telegraph which I got round to reading last night. The story plus a couple of related articles is here: www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/08/26/nbaby126.xml

Fussy- it was a good lesson in being careful when talking to people- especially about ds1's capabilities. If I want to discuss something good that he is doing and how to extend that I now video him doing it, show the professionals and take it from there. I never tell them without showing them.

I had the whole MSBP thing as well pre-dx (pre-dx I was thought to be too pessimistic, afterwards I was thought to be too optimistic- can't win). That was done to my face though (by a dietician who told me I was making up his potential autism and there was nothing wrong with him, I was just messing around with his diet to be fashionable aged 8 he is severely autistic and still non-verbal).

I'm very very careful when talking to professionals I don't know well now.

Also, doesn't this violate the child's human rights if the mother wishes to breast feed?

Why isn;t there more of an outcry about the family court system? Anything I've read about it has horrified me, it's totally archaic, but it never seems to gather enough momentum to be dealt with.

I'd go on 'holiday' and just never come back.

I don't know, gess, it'd be all over the place in some countries. Well, it's not allowed to operate in secrecy in other places, however.

Yes, MTPW, some place like France where it's hella hard to extradite.

I'd go back to the US of A and fight it from there.

I agree gess, it needs a terrier like current affairs journalist to make a big fuss. Or a movement brave enough to take it on. Ideally composed of non parents since most parents will be too terrified to get involved.

Whenever I read stuff like this I think there but for the grace of god go any of us really.

Misogyny is at the heart of it I think.

The family court system is outragious. I can't even find the words to describe how wrong it is.

Because of its secrecy I guess it needs to be people unaffected by it who complain about it. Is there an online petition anywhere? Do any of the parties propose to do anything about it (would make me interested in voting for them if it was on a manifesto somewhere). Lets get David Cameron back and ask him!

Didn't someone ask about it during the recent chat with the childrens minister? Will go and look

aah yes, it was me, I asked the childrens minister Beverley Hughes and didn't get an answer

We all ought to write really. But frankly, I'm scared to.

Expat in the recent case where the covert video of social workers (telling a mother she couldn't have her child) was removed from Youtube, they tell her she can't even have her expressed milk delivered to the baby because it isn't practical.
I don't think these people take breastfeeding rights very seriously.

EU Court of Human Rights, anyone? Can these people appeal decisions in this arena?

I mean, if effing prisoners can use it.

By wickedwaterwitch on Wed 23-May-07 16:39:20
And another (sorry if already asked, haven't read thread):

What does Beverley Hughes propose to do, if anything, about the secrecy of the family courts (who jailed Sally Clarke and other women, for crimes they didn't commit)?

And Beverley Hughes didn't answer it.

So if one were to email Beverley Hughes then she'd have to answer wouldn't she?

But like I said, I'm too scared. And that is awful, but I am.

Why are you scared WWW? I mean, is there any reason in particular? (Don't give details if you don't want to.)

I suppose once you've taken someone's child away it is easy to intimidate them into not appealling etc by telling them they'll never see their child again if they do but if they play ball they may do one day. Until the child is formally adopted, of course, and then it's too late.

No, no reason Kathy! My children are both NT, no interaction with social workers ever, BUT, come to think of it (just remembered this as I started typing), I went to a dr in Devon once and said I couldn't stop crying because a) I'd just split up with my husband b)I'd recently had a termination c)I had no money d) My ds wasn't sleeping e) My best friend had decided to stop speaking to me f)I didn't know ANYONE else locally and g) I had no support from my family

and he said 'you'd better take some anti depressants or you might find your son taken away' and referred me to a social worker from the childrens team who came to see me a week later. Luckily social worker said gp was wrong there was no reason for social services to be involved and recommended that if I were to ever leave the town I might want to make a complaint against the dr for his conduct and attitude towards me. (I never did, too scared) However, I made sure my mum was there for that social worker visit and that my flat was spotless as was my son, as was I. And I am an articulate, middle class, fairly hard nosed professional woman who was just going through a rough time and was understandably finding it very hard going.

unfortunately this is happening all too often now.
There was a story about a lady with AS who SS said was at risk of harming her baby and they were going to remove it when it was born, this despite the womans husband and parents telling them they would help her in bringing up her baby.

A friend of mine is losing her son on the 30th of this month, the reason?
her son is autistic and has refused to go to school so because she is a single mum and has a disability they have completely destroyed her and said she has projected her anxieties onto her son and THATS why he wont go to school, he,s 8, she cant speak about it because its already gone through court, she is having to train the foster parents how to deal with her son, its absolutely hearbreaking.

The people involved in these cases need to speak publicly about their stories, even if that means they are risking contempt.

I would happily go to jail to keep speaking out.

But they'd revoke my nationality and deport me.

Then again, I'd pick up the girls' blue passports and bail asap.

Then, first thing I'd do when I got back, it get my parents' church involved. In the US, once you start with the religious stuff, you tend to be left alone.

And actually in my case the dr was prejudiced because I'd left my husband (he even questioned why! Outrageous!) and had a termination and he just saw me as a feckless single parent. When actually, at the time I had £47k in the bank, wasn't claiming any benefits (not that it would have been fair to treat me that way if I had been), lived in a decent place etc.

But it showed me how easily it can/could happen. IF the social worker who'd visited me had decided there was a problem I might not have ds today. I was 33 at the time so not even young/naive.

There is a lot of misogyny and chauvinism in still in the medical field here. Hopefully this will change as more females become doctors and the dinosaurs die off or retire.

I'm American too -- and a lawyer. It completely blows my mind that the family law system works this way here.

It came as a huge shock to me, too, daisy. I am American, but married to a Scotsman and now a naturalised Brit/dual national.

Jenk1- I have an autistic relative who was taken last Nov after his school reported him to SS. His brother was also taken. The school seems to have a lot of authority. He is non verbal and in nappies which is being used as evidence of abuse. There is a date set for a fact finding session 13 months after they were taken.