Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: A life cut short by cruelty

[Hitchington]

I am quite sure you do.

But....

The "overworked Social Worker" has been a "thing" for most of my adult life (I am 74). I know the Conservatives may have been in Government for the majority of that time, but, not ALL the time. My experiences of Social Services have been spread over the past 45-50 years. In my experience, no matter which party was in power, or what funding levels were in place, little of nothing has changed at "the sharp end" ie the interface with the public.

In short, it appears to me, shouting "Boris is crap" (which, I agree, he is) will not "fix" the situation, so, whilst it might relieve a bit of frustration, it will do little of nothing to improve the situation.

No, this Tory government is crap (which includes Johnson, Cameron, May, Osbourne, Hancock, Sunak...)

Yes, we know social work has always been the poor neighbour of health. But under New Labour there was real investment right across the board. In the Blair and Brown years I worked in a crisis intervention team that was well funded and we had access to SALT, OT, psychology; there was real joined up thinking and prevention. This was a mainly adult service and we did a lot of transition work for under 18s coming into adult services. New Labour had a lot wrong with it, but in this area it was real progress.

That intention service I worked in is gone, it was integrated into another team and eventually the focus is back on reactive intervention. There aren't the resources, staff and money for proactive work anymore.

This starts and stops with a government hell bent on cutting for ideological reasons. It has an effect right across the board. Moral is low, we've lost colleagues to Covid 19, we've lost colleagues because of mental health illness and we've lost colleagues because they can't take it anymore.

I'm seriously thinking of quitting myself, but I have a mortgage, a car in the garage waiting for a new gearbox when I can afford it. But right now there are children and families who are in desperate need of some kind of intervention and me walking away is not an option for them.

My caseload is mainly CIN and short breaks. I don't have any CP or LAC cases, thank goodness. I focus on assessments and reviews but I also do communication and PBS intervention because the waiting lists for CAMHS is astronomical; it could be 12-18 months before a child is seen after referral and even them CAMHS will only take on the very severe cases.

Everyone on my caseload is seen in line with statutory requirements and I have to make a judgement with what to prioritise. It's the children and families who aren't know to us I worry about. There are families who are very demanding of our limited and precious time. We have to work to a systemic model and encourage families to use their own strengths to function because we can't do 95% of what they're asking for. Again it's easy for the quiet families to drop under the radar and again that's what keeps me awake at night.

You have your own experiences as a social worker, and I have mine. My experience over the past 20 odd years has allowed my to form my opinion of what's going wrong in social care.

 

[Bromptonaut]

Anonymised article in today's Guardian from somebody who worked in Bradford as an Agency Social Worker:

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news...orked-social-worker-recalls-stint-in-bradford

He makes the same point as @Hitchington regarding a service that is almost wholly reactive.

 

[Rusty Nails]

How will it "improve the situation" (in the area in question), if the incoming Government (of which ever party) are equally inept, which appears to have been the case for the past 50 years?

Could it even be, that, in Social Services, there is a deeper malady, which shovelling money will not fix?

My point is, there appears to be a belief that a Labour Government will lead to a Utopian situation, all I am saying, is, in my 74 years (with several periods of Labour Government) this has not been so. That, by the way, does not make me a Conservative, or, "right wing" (IMHO, of course).

If there is enough criticism of a government's approach to issues like social service provision and its effect on child abuse then there will be improvement. In the case of social services it needs newspapers like the Mail and Express to complain, and not just trot out the usual dog-whistle and deflection comments about inept social service departments.
If there is no criticism there will be no change, no matter what colour of government. There is no "deeper malady", other than the priority governments put on it, and the lack of interest of many voters because it does not directly affect their little lives.
I have been around the same 74 years as you and I have never seen a Utopian period under a Labour or Tory government, and do not believe we will get to one, but I do generally prefer the approach of Labour to Tory on many issues. I have also never seen anyone on this forum say that a Labour government will lead to Utopia and am unsure where you get this idea from.
I think that our whole Labour/Tory duopoly has not helped in that, in my short life, it has never, other than one coalition, given us a government that has been voted for by a majority of the electorate, never mind a majority of the country. The main concern of every government is re-election so that short term changes that bring a quick win, or at least will be forgotten about before the next election, are more important than difficult and costly long term changes.
My attitude is fairly simple: if you are unhappy with the government of the day, no matter what colour, then complain in any legitimate way possible, but do not complain when people complain, just tell them why they are wrong to do so.

 

[Pale Rider]

My posts in here are usually made seriously and after giving the issue some thought.

My judgement was that the first post (Milzy?) was based on pub or dinner table anecdotes; the usual stuff about public sector skivers etc. My 'cool story' response reflected that.

Hitchington's account is first hand and tallies with other reputable or indeed impeccable sources. By impeccable I mean the Laming report on Climbie and the decision of the tribunal that reinstated the Climbie social worker Lisa Arthurworrey.

You agree with one and disagree with the other, it's that simple.

Just as you 'like' posts which insult members you disagree with, but are very quick to jump on anyone who insults a poster you agree with.

The general public is increasingly weary of the likes of the police and social services using lack of resources as an excuse for doing a crap job.

 

[BoldonLad]

Has the sheep dog hacked your account? You are arguing against something that nobody has said.

Well, no one has said it explicitly, I would agree.

But, we have:

- an unending river of anti Conservative bile
- a belief that a Lib-Dem Government is as likely as pigs flying

so, once the wicked Tories, including Boris, have been shown the door, who do we expect to be in Government?

 

[BoldonLad]

If there is enough criticism of a government's approach to issues like social service provision and its effect on child abuse then there will be improvement. In the case of social services it needs newspapers like the Mail and Express to complain, and not just trot out the usual dog-whistle and deflection comments about inept social service departments.
If there is no criticism there will be no change, no matter what colour of government. There is no "deeper malady", other than the priority governments put on it, and the lack of interest of many voters because it does not directly affect their little lives.
I have been around the same 74 years as you and I have never seen a Utopian period under a Labour or Tory government, and do not believe we will get to one, but I do generally prefer the approach of Labour to Tory on many issues. I have also never seen anyone on this forum say that a Labour government will lead to Utopia and am unsure where you get this idea from.
I think that our whole Labour/Tory duopoly has not helped in that, in my short life, it has never, other than one coalition, given us a government that has been voted for by a majority of the electorate, never mind a majority of the country. The main concern of every government is re-election so that short term changes that bring a quick win, or at least will be forgotten about before the next election, are more important than difficult and costly long term changes.
My attitude is fairly simple: if you are unhappy with the government of the day, no matter what colour, then complain in any legitimate way possible, but do not complain when people complain, just tell them why they are wrong to do so.

Is that an opinion, or, do you have facts to back up that statement?

 

[BoldonLad]

No, this Tory government is crap (which includes Johnson, Cameron, May, Osbourne, Hancock, Sunak...)

Yes, we know social work has always been the poor neighbour of health. But under New Labour there was real investment right across the board. In the Blair and Brown years I worked in a crisis intervention team that was well funded and we had access to SALT, OT, psychology; there was real joined up thinking and prevention. This was a mainly adult service and we did a lot of transition work for under 18s coming into adult services. New Labour had a lot wrong with it, but in this area it was real progress.

That intention service I worked in is gone, it was integrated into another team and eventually the focus is back on reactive intervention. There aren't the resources, staff and money for proactive work anymore.

This starts and stops with a government hell bent on cutting for ideological reasons. It has an effect right across the board. Moral is low, we've lost colleagues to Covid 19, we've lost colleagues because of mental health illness and we've lost colleagues because they can't take it anymore.

I'm seriously thinking of quitting myself, but I have a mortgage, a car in the garage waiting for a new gearbox when I can afford it. But right now there are children and families who are in desperate need of some kind of intervention and me walking away is not an option for them.

My caseload is mainly CIN and short breaks. I don't have any CP or LAC cases, thank goodness. I focus on assessments and reviews but I also do communication and PBS intervention because the waiting lists for CAMHS is astronomical; it could be 12-18 months before a child is seen after referral and even them CAMHS will only take on the very severe cases.

Everyone on my caseload is seen in line with statutory requirements and I have to make a judgement with what to prioritise. It's the children and families who aren't know to us I worry about. There are families who are very demanding of our limited and precious time. We have to work to a systemic model and encourage families to use their own strengths to function because we can't do 95% of what they're asking for. Again it's easy for the quiet families to drop under the radar and again that's what keeps me awake at night.

You have your own experiences as a social worker, and I have mine. My experience over the past 20 odd years has allowed my to form my opinion of what's going wrong in social care.

1. I don't have experience as a Social Worker, I have experience, one way or another, as a Client, or, at best, an associate (ie Foster Parent)

2. I did have some experience of Social Services in "Blair Years", it wasn't pleasant, and, it wasn't working.

3. Maybe the bolded part is part of the problem? I particularly wonder about the " encourage families to use their own strengths to function" as if that is a problem, surely, it should be an objective?

 

[Bromptonaut]

You agree with one and disagree with the other, it's that simple.

Just as you 'like' posts which insult members you disagree with, but are very quick to jump on anyone who insults a poster you agree with.

The general public is increasingly weary of the likes of the police and social services using lack of resources as an excuse for doing a crap job.

The bolded bit is too simplistic. Only one of the posts is based on anecdata.

I've explained my use of likes previously; you give them too much weight.

 

[Pale Rider]

The bolded bit is too simplistic.

We need more simplistic, not less.

 

[Bromptonaut]

We need more simplistic, not less.

Simplistic: making unrealistically simple judgements or analyses....

 

[Rusty Nails]

Is that an opinion, or, do you have facts to back up that statement?

"Could it even be, that, in Social Services, there is a deeper malady, which shovelling money will not fix?"

A broad brush statement/question such as the above is pure conjecture and based on absolutely no evidence, logic or facts at all, and without even hinting at a solution does not warrant any further answer. Of course my statement is an opinion, based on austerity cuts on local government services and increased workload/pressure on staff, so do you have you any hints at all, or even opinions, about what this "deeper malady" could possibly be since you raised the idea, or are you just fishing without committing yourself?

 

[BoldonLad]

"Could it even be, that, in Social Services, there is a deeper malady, which shovelling money will not fix?"

A broad brush statement/question such as the above is pure conjecture and based on absolutely no evidence, logic or facts at all, and without even hinting at a solution does not warrant any further answer. Of course my statement is an opinion, based on austerity cuts on local government services and increased workload/pressure on staff, so do you have you any hints at all, or even opinions, about what this "deeper malady" could possibly be since you raised the idea, or are you just fishing without committing yourself?

No. Mine is an opinion too, and, just as valid/invalid as yours, again, in my opinion.

I don’t have a problem with opinions, I just thought it was the done thing on here to ask for links to back up supposed “facts”. Opinions of course, are… well opinions.

 

[Rusty Nails]

No. Mine is an opinion too, and, just as valid/invalid as yours, again, in my opinion.

I don’t have a problem with opinions, I just thought it was the done thing on here to ask for links to back up supposed “facts”. Opinions of course, are… well opinions.

Where did I say my comment was a fact, supposed or otherwise? Even you asked if it was an opinion.

Just for clarity, unless I say something I post is a fact it is an opinion.

And you know what they say about opinions, including mine and yours.

And, while in search of clarity, if it is your opinion that there is a "deeper malady" what is that "deeper malady"? It could help in looking for the solution.

 

[BoldonLad]

Where did I say my comment was a fact, supposed or otherwise? Even you asked if it was an opinion.

Just for clarity, unless I say something I post is a fact it is an opinion.

And you know what they say about opinions, including mine and yours.

And, while in search of clarity, if it is your opinion that there is a "deeper malady" what is that "deeper malady"? It could help in looking for the solution.

Fascinating, again, I am asked for a solution. I don't notice anyone else being asked for a solution, but, since I don't have any amusing(?) videos to post, and, don't indulge in name calling, it would appear I have nothing valuable to add to the "discussion".

 

[Rusty Nails]

Fascinating, again, I am asked for a solution. I don't notice anyone else being asked for a solution, but, since I don't have any amusing(?) videos to post, and, don't indulge in name calling, it would appear I have nothing valuable to add to the "discussion".

There's no need to be so hard on yourself

You haven't been asked for a solution, just an opinion on this "deeper malady" which you introduced to the topic.

FWIW, I doubt there is "a" solution, but more likely a series of steps that have to be taken, which will not provide a quick fix.