The poor 17 month old -died of broken back

[skydancer1]

I just find these kind of stories of extreme abuse so very upsetting and wish we had better safeguards in place to stop such hideous harm happening or at least continuing (when it's pretty obvious!) to helpless children. Why on earth did the doctor not examine a child because he was already on an at risk register and was 'cranky and miserable' at an appointment and hence he/she failed to notice broken back and ribs? It beggars belief. I'm not a punitive 'hang them flog them' type (in fact I'm strongly against corporal punishment) but in this instance I think the mother should be forcibly sterilised to prevent her ever hurting or 'allowing' such hurt to any other child.

No, I don't agree with you litchick. Sometimes fingers have to be pointed. Someone or some people involved in this family's case this case should be brought to book.

In principle Jangly ok - but it will not be that easy I doubt 1 or more individuals will be to blame. No doubt it will be a catalogue of errors and problems inherent in the system.

However god help the poor bastard if it is decided that they need a scapegoat to pin this on.

izyboy - if it is a catalogue of errors and system failure the heads at the top should roll

They are responsible for ensuring they systems they have put in place work. They have spectacularly failed to do so. That heartless jobsworth Sharon Shoesmith should be the first to resign. If she had any principles she would have done so already.

The controller of Radio 2 resigned because of a scandal that happened on her watch, why on earth is no senior person at Haringey LA accountable for these tragedies?

People at management and executive levels finish up in prison when dreadful things occur under their watch. Lyme Regis canoeing, the ferry boat with open doors, Kings Cross fire, etc.

I'm glad to hear that there is going to be an independent enquiry (is that really true?) as it struck me as ridiculous that Haringey ss could get away with an internal enquiry after such a spectacular failure again . It's time for the likes of Sharon Shoesmith's jobs to be reviewed rather than just their underpaid, undervalued (and obviously under trained!) minions.

Well ok Jangly but dont expect a rush of people to fill all those existing Child and Family social worker posts.

izyboy - I haven't got all the answers, of course I haven't. But I just know that something insn't right somewhere. Oh, in answer to question in your previous post, - they wouldn't have me now!

(I'm a bit old)

Thing is Jangly they would have you! (seriously, if you are a qualified social worker I am sure that you would be able to get a job in Child and Famiy)

'Systemic failure' caused this child's murder, apparently..

Maybe that's the same systemic failure that caused the death of my child during a healthy, full-term labour.

In our case, legal action was taken and three negligent and incompetent people lost their jobs.

I don't see why the people who f*d up here should be any different. How many times was this child 'seen'?

No Izyboy, I'm not qualified very much for anything. I'm just a granny whose heart keeps breaking every time these awful things happen.

Let's hope the enquiry isn't chaired by a person with a conflict of interest, as seems to have happened so far....

Poor, poor little boy.

It sounds like a real catalogue of failure from both social services and health. Were the injuries somehow harder to spot than they sound? I don't see how they could have been but I'm astonished that those who were offering care, like the childminder and his dad- who apparently had him for the weekend just a few days before he died- missed the extent of his injuries too.

There have been stories in the media recently about prospective adopters being asked to jump through what seem to be ridiculous hoops to enable them to adopt a much-wanted child. To now read how a child was left in a violent, yet deemed to be 'suitable' environment is sickening.

All wrong, innit?

Please everyone - lets all do something, there must be an outcry about this and policy makers must know unreservedly that this cannot be allowed to happen again. Announcement of an enquiry is not enough to instill any confidence in me that real changes will be made here.

A collective approach will achieve more.

I am going to write to Beverley Hughes tonight and will also make a donation to NSPCC for Baby P.

I don't know why Social Services are being made the scapegoat, there are other agencies involved in this and other cases (there was a similar one in Sheffield very recently)

The police, the PCT (which would include the Health Visitor and I assume the consultant paediatrician), the lawyers etc are all involved in this case too.

I understand why some Mumsnetters choose to avoid subjects like this one even (for upsetting reasons etc) but it does make for a generally narrow view and hate filled thread.

Mercy - the police tried to have baby P taken into care but were over ruled by SS who failed to tell the police about injuries reported by a doctor.

SS also withheld information on the case from the police when the murder investigation was ongoing

Despite all this the police have acknowledged that they made errors but SS are, unbelievably, "satisfied that the action that should have been taken was taken."

This shows that there are serious problems and they don't understand what their role in child protection entails!

the mother was named in our local paper - and the baby - I remember reading it at the time (before it went to court) not sure why their identities are protected now. I'm not sure either where her older three children are? may have missed that but assuming (hoping) they were already were when this happened

in care that should have said

Some people should not be allowed to have children and this skank of a "mother" is one of those people·
How could any sane person stand by and let someone do that to their child?
Oh but she was raised by a drug addict mother, so bloody what loads of people have and they don't all turn out like her (again, some people should not be allowed to have children) oh and she married a drunk who beat her, again so bloody what, the next man she opened her legs for beat her child to death, still at least he was not hitting her.
She sat on the Internet smoking while he beat a baby, she brought in to her sons home a man obsessed with nazi crap and in to pain, ok if you are a grown up who gets your jollies from being bound and beaten get on with it, but he beat a child. Also at 36 he had a 15 year old girlfriend so he was a skank magnet and a paedo, good choice of man there.

I hope when he get to jail there is a welcome party for him, killing scum like this is too good for them, glass in their food and a daily kicking is much better, as for the benefit scrounging chain smoking sad bitch of a mother I hope someone does to her what she allowed to be done to her baby.

And the social workers who can walk away to read their copy of the guardian and say it was not their fault, I hope they burn in hell I really do.
It will not stop till the fecking tree huggers put down their copy of the guardian and look at the real world, and do something about the low life's that are welcomed in to society instead of being made to feel shame for the way they conduct themselves are wrapped in cotton wool and allowed to shout bigot at decent people who tell them they are dirty and wrong.
Oh and just in case you don't get the message I am so bloody angry at what they did to that poor baby I would rip them apart with my bare hands given the chance.
People like them are scum and as a society we should be allowed to put them down.

Well, it looks like an independent review is being carried out after all:
www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/nov/12/babyp-edballs-haringey

I still think it's worth contacting the ministers involved to register concern though, just so they know we're keeping an eye on them! Their email addresses can be found here

the only consolation for me is knowing that these low life scum will have the crap beaten out of them in prison

Thanks for doing the contact details homework for me, Missmodular. Will definitely write in. We need to keep up the momentum.