Accountability

Last nights T.V., had an informative and interesting theme, Satanic Rituals in Rochdale.

I can accept that sometimes the TV makers, do air programmes that are sensationalised to catch the viewers.

This however, was not one of them!

The story concerned families on a Council Estate in Rochdale, and the after effects of an unwarranted and unjustified investigation by Rochdale social services. Whilst I understand that we are looking back in hindsight at events that occurred a few years ago. What stuck me as most noticable was the complete lack of accountability by the Social Services department. Add this to the complete lack of any help or aid to the families concerned, and that a TV company had to go to court to overturn a "gagging order" given by the Family Court, to prevent the childrens story from being told,(and one also presumes to protect the culpable Social Workers) beggars belief.

In the days after Mr Tony Blairs statement that the Country needs to return to a culture of respect, what respect was given to the adults and children in the above case?

None! These children were taken from their homes by force! The children were medically examined under the flimsiest of excuses, based on one social workers interpretation of a childs dreams. This in itself constitutes State Abuse, if not State Sanctioned Rape! Some of the childrens friends were taken from the safety of their homes in dawn raids.

Far too often, we as citizens of this country are told that the National and Local Governments and all their agencies and departments know what is best and what is in our best interests. All to often this is proven to be wrong.

But even more worrying is that the usual statement given by all concerned is "It was in the childrens/persons/families best interests". As if this sop absolves any responsibility for their actions.

It is not a valid excuse it is a cop out, social services always use the same excuse believing that this makes everything alright. Then its the favoured "think of all the people/children we have helped". But that does not help anyone when they have got it catagorically wrong. Nor does their inability to admit they got it wrong!

Any member of Social Services that gets it wrong should be sacked! No "If's or But's" they should lose their jobs, and the councils should be made to pay damages.

If other services suffer because of the amounts wasted in paying compensation, TOUGH!!! Get it right!!!

If these people "got it right", and got it right first time, there would be no need of apologies or compensation! Remember they are supposed to be the experts!!!

But all too often these experts are not experts at all, they have a degree in social work, this in itself does not mean they are qualified to deal with anything. They have a qualification, but it appears no common sense!