Should looked after children have a right to an IRO?
The Children & Social Work Bill is making its way
through the Lords. It was enthusiastically introduced by Lord Nash as giving
local authorities “an opportunity to test
new ways of working in a safe and managed environment so that they can tailor
their services specifically to the needs of children rather than slavishly
following a set of one-size-fits-all rules”.
Indeed clauses 15 to 19 of the Children & Social Work Bill
introduce a fast-track process for the removal of any of hundreds of local
authority duties to children, young people and families.
NAIRO was one of the signatories to a letter to the Guardian
newspaper urging peers to reject clauses 15-19, and call on the government to
consult on its vision and plan for children’s social care. Bill-puts-children's-social-care-at-risk
NAIRO’s patron and co signatory, Professor June
Thoburn, was quoted in another article "June Thoburn – emeritus
professor of social work at the University of East Anglia – told the Guardian
new powers were not needed because existing legislation already allows
frontline social workers to innovate. It was not clear why exempting failing
authorities from legal duties would improve services, or why already successful
councils need more freedom.
She said: “It is hard to escape the conclusion that [the bill]
is really about achieving David Cameron’s stated aim of ‘academisation’ for all
local authority child and family social care and child protection services.
“But by providing a route for (initially) a few selected
local authorities to divest themselves of (unspecified) duties introduced into
legislation to help families in distressing circumstances, these proposed
clauses open the door to the removal of crucial rights and services from some
of our most disadvantaged citizens”. labour-fears-potential-privatisation-of-child-protection-services
Isabelle Trowler, Chief Social Worker for Children and
Families, has already proposed that the role of the IRO should be removed using
these powers “ the role of the
Independent Reviewing Officer. Is that the best use of those 2,000 or so
practitioners, in a very prescriptive role? Often our most experienced ,
talented practitioners are IROs. Could we use that skill, resource differently?
communitycare
article
Lord Nash told the Lords that “there is strong consensus in the sector that in low-risk cases the role
of the independent reviewing officer brings no additional benefit. Exemptions
will allow local authorities to trial redirecting IRO resource differently—for
example, to more complex cases—while reducing the number of additional people a
young person does not know at their review, which is a known concern, in more
straightforward cases”
The Lords are doing a sterling job in scrutinising the Bill
and raising questions about the skeleton nature of the Bill which was raised by
the Constitution Committee “The Bill
grants extensive powers to the Secretary of State …..the introduction of
legislation that leaves much to the subsequent discretion of ministers. We regret
that, despite the concerns expressed in the past by this and other committees,
the Government continues to introduce legislation that depends so heavily on an
array of broad delegated powers.”
I think we are all
aware at this time of how quickly power can change hands. Our most vulnerable
children do not deserve to be at the mercy of political power games now or in
the future.
Jacki Rothwell
Chair of Trustees NAIRO
