Topic: Arthur Labinjo-Hughes

[rob1966]

You don't know any of this, which is why an inquiry will take place. Also the point has already been made that lockdown conditions meant it was harder for social workers to go into houses of people, like this. There is a report here, which is looks at that very challenge that many social workers had to face to enable their work to be done. Then there is the manipulative nature of the woman involved in this case. But yes, let's just blame it all on the social workers, rather than look at the government and its underfunding of social care nationally, or the fact that many social workers have left the job, leaving a huge burden on those who are left to do the job. Maybe the question we should be asking is why does this country have so many at risk in the first place?

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/dec/03/how-much-did-lockdown-help-arthur-labinjo-hughes-killers-escape-notice

This is everything. Our society needs to take a long hard look at itself and work out where it is all going wrong, because as a nation, it really is.

[PeterJM]

Sorry, this is all sorts of wrong to me. Nothing to do with the two killers, but I definitively don't want sentencing by mob rule, and I also don't want parliament to decide sentences. The justice system and the political system have to be independent.

The person who started the petition obviously doesn't know that parliament don't set any sentence nor do they change any sentence that is deemed unduly lenient.The attorney general's office will be dealing with the sentence review and it won't go anywhere near parliament as is always the case.

[oldfordie]

You don't know any of this, which is why an inquiry will take place. Also the point has already been made that lockdown conditions meant it was harder for social workers to go into houses of people, like this. There is a report here, which is looks at that very challenge that many social workers had to face to enable their work to be done. Then there is the manipulative nature of the woman involved in this case. But yes, let's just blame it all on the social workers, rather than look at the government and its underfunding of social care nationally, or the fact that many social workers have left the job, leaving a huge burden on those who are left to do the job. Maybe the question we should be asking is why does this country have so many at risk in the first place?

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/dec/03/how-much-did-lockdown-help-arthur-labinjo-hughes-killers-escape-notice

Am assuming the Grandmother is telling the truth, she says she showed the Social workers photos of Arthurs bruising 2 months before he was killed, they had good reasons to enter the home. the social workers decided Arthur wasn't a risk.
I agree about the underfunding and I know this and Covid must have brought a lot of problems and pressure for social workers but it seems Arthur was under the Social workers attention,  the made decision to leave Arthur with his parents, the reasons for this need to be looked at if lessons are to be learned. 
 

[Dench57]

You don't know any of this, which is why an inquiry will take place. Also the point has already been made that lockdown conditions meant it was harder for social workers to go into houses of people, like this. There is a report here, which is looks at that very challenge that many social workers had to face to enable their work to be done. Then there is the manipulative nature of the woman involved in this case. But yes, let's just blame it all on the social workers, rather than look at the government and its underfunding of social care nationally, or the fact that many social workers have left the job, leaving a huge burden on those who are left to do the job. Maybe the question we should be asking is why does this country have so many at risk in the first place?

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/dec/03/how-much-did-lockdown-help-arthur-labinjo-hughes-killers-escape-notice

Well said Jill. The Tories and their tabloids will make sure the social workers are vilified for this, maybe "too woke" will be the narrative. Not to say there wasn't individual failings in this particular case, it sounds like there was, but attention will be firmly diverted away from austerity, funding cuts and the simple increased difficulty of effective social work during a pandemic.

[TSC]

Well said Jill. The Tories and their tabloids will make sure the social workers are vilified for this, maybe "too woke" will be the narrative. Not to say there wasn't individual failings in this particular case, it sounds like there was, but attention will be firmly diverted away from austerity, funding cuts and the simple increased difficulty of effective social work during a pandemic.

Earlier this year it was reported up to 25 councils were close to going bankrupt due to years of cuts.

https://tribunemag.co.uk/2021/03/how-cuts-and-covid-have-bankrupted-our-councils/

[Elmo!]

Well said Jill. The Tories and their tabloids will make sure the social workers are vilified for this, maybe "too woke" will be the narrative. Not to say there wasn't individual failings in this particular case, it sounds like there was, but attention will be firmly diverted away from austerity, funding cuts and the simple increased difficulty of effective social work during a pandemic.

My mum is a social worker in child protection services, and it sickens me to see them all attacked as a profession when they do an extremely important and tough job which ivolves making really difficult decisions - while dealing with year on year cuts. Of course what happened here should be investigated to find out what happened.

[jillcwhomever]

Am assuming the Grandmother is telling the truth, she says she showed the Social workers photos of Arthurs bruising 2 months before he was killed, they had good reasons to enter the home. the social workers decided Arthur wasn't a risk.
I agree about the underfunding and I know this and Covid must have brought a lot of problems and pressure for social workers but it seems Arthur was under the Social workers attention,  the made decision to leave Arthur with his parents, the reasons for this need to be looked at if lessons are to be learned.

I am not saying that there may not have been individual mistakes made, but that's why you have a enquiry. But we already have the Tory MP in the area blaming the local services without everyone else falling into that as well. If there is a shortage of social workers how exactly are we to keep on top of all the case which are ongoing? My job involves scanning reports over and you cannot believe how many children there are at risk in this country. Then we have a Tory government who is systematically taking local government apart yet we expect them to be able to keep on top of every case regardless? I don't think that's possible, yet naturally the Tory arse reckons these cuts "shouldn't make any differece."

[jillcwhomever]

Am assuming the Grandmother is telling the truth, she says she showed the Social workers photos of Arthurs bruising 2 months before he was killed, they had good reasons to enter the home. the social workers decided Arthur wasn't a risk.
I agree about the underfunding and I know this and Covid must have brought a lot of problems and pressure for social workers but it seems Arthur was under the Social workers attention,  the made decision to leave Arthur with his parents, the reasons for this need to be looked at if lessons are to be learned.

The other thing is we don't know how many cases the social worker had and what the structure behind it is like. I know in my job loads of people are leaving and they are not being replaced as councils look to make savings being which are being forced on them. My biggest worry is they will vilify the local services but who is looking into this Government and the affect that years and years of cuts are having on both social care and others services which people rely on?

[jillcwhomever]

My mum is a social worker in child protection services, and it sickens me to see them all attacked as a profession when they do an extremely important and tough job which ivolves making really difficult decisions - while dealing with year on year cuts. Of course what happened here should be investigated to find out what happened.

That's the thing isn't it? The only time the spotlight is on social workers is a tragedy like this one. People don't know how many times social workers enable children to be safe, as no one gets to hear about those cases. But the moment it goes wrong everything starts flying at them from all angles. The whole enquiry should also look at how cuts have damaged the local structures that social workers operate from, but of course it won't happen.

[TSC]

My mum is a social worker in child protection services, and it sickens me to see them all attacked as a profession when they do an extremely important and tough job which ivolves making really difficult decisions - while dealing with year on year cuts. Of course what happened here should be investigated to find out what happened.

I used to commission services in local government for both Adults and Children’s social care.  Budgets were cut immediately by c.20-25% when Tory austerity kicked in.  That was 2010/11.  Further cuts followed in successive years.  The phrase ‘cut to the bone’ doesn’t do it justice.

Any investigation should (but no doubt won’t) include references to the impact of cuts on service delivery.

[Macphisto80]

I see the point about petitions. Couldn't give a bollox. Signed it anyway.

[paulrazor]

I see the point about petitions. Couldn't give a bollox. Signed it anyway.

same

Not bothered arguing with it.

All I'll say is if the correct sentence was handed out in first place there wouldn't be a petition