Initial child protection conference
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hello all - looking for your experiences of child protection conferences. Got one coming up in couple of weeks. For context my partner not been asked to leave house, though suggestion made that I not leave him in house on his own with kids (which I done). SW said other week she would come every week to see kids but then only came once. I have a solicitor who is saying the they don’t seem very concerned, though if they weren’t I’m not sure why we doing a child protection conference. My partner has not been charged and not on bail. Police have told SW they acted on a tip off but have no evidence themselves and can’t say until they looked at his devices. Under caution he has admitted to looking at non naked, non erotic pics of under 18s on a website which says it is legal. He has denied searching for or viewing illegal indecent images.
i have a solicitor who will attend the child protection conference with me as my advocate, though she says she can only work on my behalf as what she advises me may be different to what she may advise my partner.
we now have a report from a forensic psychologist who says he is extremely low risk ( on the basis that nobody can be no risk) and puts forward her opinion as to why he looked at non nude images.
would really like to hear your experiences of these conferences. I have read people’s experiences on FRG website and also done a tonne of research on them. I amstanding by my partner and would really like the outcome to be that he doesn’t have to leave the house - we both happy to continue current arrangement of not being on own in house until a charging/ not charging decision made. Also we have passwords on his phone and on computer which only I know and his profiles are set so he can’t see unsuitable material.
thoughts and experiences?
i have a solicitor who will attend the child protection conference with me as my advocate, though she says she can only work on my behalf as what she advises me may be different to what she may advise my partner.
we now have a report from a forensic psychologist who says he is extremely low risk ( on the basis that nobody can be no risk) and puts forward her opinion as to why he looked at non nude images.
would really like to hear your experiences of these conferences. I have read people’s experiences on FRG website and also done a tonne of research on them. I amstanding by my partner and would really like the outcome to be that he doesn’t have to leave the house - we both happy to continue current arrangement of not being on own in house until a charging/ not charging decision made. Also we have passwords on his phone and on computer which only I know and his profiles are set so he can’t see unsuitable material.
thoughts and experiences?
Hi big sigh,
I don’t really have anything to offer as children services classified my daughter as child in need so at this point don’t need to progress to a child protection conference.
You sound like you have done your research and are aware of the risks.
I would just say note anything down that you have done. And know the child protection team do have a complaints procedure if needed.
i am sure you are already polite and amenable to what they are asking of you. Even if there is conflict in their level of risk. It’s important for them that they can see your children come first in any decision you make.
Its blooming hard isn’t it when you do care About your partner. Though all children services need to know is not only that you love your children but can keep them safe. So acknowledge the situation.
The fact that your partner is also dealing with his demons should show that he is not minamising the impact.
you sound like your being very strong and it’s good you have legal advice.
the thing with children services is that they do know children are best looked after in their birth families. It is blooming scary for mums and dads. But work with them and not against and you should be okay.
i am sure others will be able to offer you more pratical advice. But I didn’t want you to feel no one was responding.
you know your kids best and sound a very proactive woman, good luck with the meeting.
I don’t really have anything to offer as children services classified my daughter as child in need so at this point don’t need to progress to a child protection conference.
You sound like you have done your research and are aware of the risks.
I would just say note anything down that you have done. And know the child protection team do have a complaints procedure if needed.
i am sure you are already polite and amenable to what they are asking of you. Even if there is conflict in their level of risk. It’s important for them that they can see your children come first in any decision you make.
Its blooming hard isn’t it when you do care About your partner. Though all children services need to know is not only that you love your children but can keep them safe. So acknowledge the situation.
The fact that your partner is also dealing with his demons should show that he is not minamising the impact.
you sound like your being very strong and it’s good you have legal advice.
the thing with children services is that they do know children are best looked after in their birth families. It is blooming scary for mums and dads. But work with them and not against and you should be okay.
i am sure others will be able to offer you more pratical advice. But I didn’t want you to feel no one was responding.
you know your kids best and sound a very proactive woman, good luck with the meeting.
Hello Big Sigh.
I would look at the safeguarding procedures for internet offending for the safeguarding board or the local authority in your area. You should see the conference report at least a day prior to the conference. You should check the report for any errors and any opinions need to be based on evidence. Not specifically criminal evidence but evidence based on social work theory or research from experienced agencies who produce published papers such as Lucy Faithfull. You could do your own research and refer to that in the conference, just make sure any research is from reputable organisations.
Unfortunately much will depend on attendees on the day. I suspect none will have any experience in this field so will respond on gut instinct or refer to statements they’ve heard others say or some kind of pseudo psycho babble they have no qualifications in.
It sounds to me as though your SW has a more lenient attitude however their management have a more rigid approach to this subject, everyone wants to cover their backs on this subject so be prepared for registration.
Much will depend on the professional with the strongest personality on the day, no one will go against the police.
Just keep calm, remind yourself you’ve put your child first, you are a reasonable and sensible parent and above all you have and will continue to put your child first. You do not condone or support this alleged behaviour.
Good luck!
I would look at the safeguarding procedures for internet offending for the safeguarding board or the local authority in your area. You should see the conference report at least a day prior to the conference. You should check the report for any errors and any opinions need to be based on evidence. Not specifically criminal evidence but evidence based on social work theory or research from experienced agencies who produce published papers such as Lucy Faithfull. You could do your own research and refer to that in the conference, just make sure any research is from reputable organisations.
Unfortunately much will depend on attendees on the day. I suspect none will have any experience in this field so will respond on gut instinct or refer to statements they’ve heard others say or some kind of pseudo psycho babble they have no qualifications in.
It sounds to me as though your SW has a more lenient attitude however their management have a more rigid approach to this subject, everyone wants to cover their backs on this subject so be prepared for registration.
Much will depend on the professional with the strongest personality on the day, no one will go against the police.
Just keep calm, remind yourself you’ve put your child first, you are a reasonable and sensible parent and above all you have and will continue to put your child first. You do not condone or support this alleged behaviour.
Good luck!
Bethlou - thank you so much for responding x
Jaded - as usual I really appreciate your experience and advice. Thanks for taking the time to respond. Couldn’t say thanks straight away as this whole social work stuff is taking up all my time. Every time I have a conversation I write up the notes, then type them up. It’s the only way I can keep a grip of everything that is going on.
will let you know how I get on x
Jaded - as usual I really appreciate your experience and advice. Thanks for taking the time to respond. Couldn’t say thanks straight away as this whole social work stuff is taking up all my time. Every time I have a conversation I write up the notes, then type them up. It’s the only way I can keep a grip of everything that is going on.
will let you know how I get on x
Yes that’s a very practical and sensible thing to do. Make sure you note times/dates and who said what. This isn’t to make you paranoid, it’s said to protect everyone in the process. Let us know how you’ve got on.
I just wanted to say thanks (in a way) for the responses here. I am also standing by a husband so it is very useful for me to read about social services as we do not yet have a family but would very much like one. It is a source of comfort to me that families survive involvement with SS.
I wish you luck going forward.
M-B
I wish you luck going forward.
M-B