How could we have let Sara down so badly?

Anniebach

Quote foxie48 Fri 13-Dec-24 08:49:03
What Alison Pearson has written is her interpretation of a situation. She wasn't present at the school and she therefore, has absolutely no way of knowing what the teachers thought. It is of note that the Head teacher reported her concerns and the family took Sara out of school.

All posts are interpretation, were you at that school ?

Nope that's why I've only commented on what was reported as happened rather than make suggestions about what anyone might have been thinking.

Galaxy

I will talk about anything I like foxie within guidelines, what other posters think is irrelevant to me. As I said there are tricky conversations to be had around 'blame' around homeschooling, possibly around the hijab, around the increased risk where a step parent is present, etc etc.

Of course you will, I wouldn't expect anything else and in no way am I trying to tell anyone what to discuss. My suggestion for people to be polite and general (I hope people understand what I'm driving at) is in respect of avoiding getting a thread shut down not shutting down discussion.

Iam64

The comments from some posters that suggest faith or ethnicity issues prevented social workers from taking effective action hold more than a hint of racism.

Indeed and therefore obfuscates the real issues that need to be explored to prevent more children (of whatever colour, faith, culture etc etc) being harmed.

No worries foxie, the conversations are hard, and peoples feelings will get hurt, but if we dont explore them ( I dont mean Gransnet but as a society) then we will keep failing those children.
There is also something else that is unpleasant to face, , say we ban homeschooling, say there is massive investment in social services, say we look at the policy of 'staying with birth family as the ultimate goal' if all that happens children such as Sara will still be killed by dangerous abusive people.

Freshair

More people need to register to foster children. I believe there aren't enough and this might be why children get placed with unsuitable parents or relatives

We thought about fostering but the red tape put us off. The social worker said that if we fostered a girl she would not be allowed in the car alone with my husband. Someone else who fostered a young boy was not allowed to cuddle him. I would have felt I was being constantly scrutinised. Yet I brought up 2 happy children. For goodness sake!

Not racism, fear

Skydancer that's heartbreaking. What the children need more of is love, not being able to hug them is..

I work in early years retiring in a year. How this wasn’t noticed at school and how all of the services never got contacted is beyond me. You know how a child is dirty quiet withdrawn the list goes on. Surely someone should have noticed.

Sky dancer never heard if the child nit being a car alone with the foster dad. No wonder they are crying out for foster care people to come forward. I have one in my class and she’s come on leaps and bounds since been taken in.

Could I just point out that keeping children within their family of origin wherever possible is not a policy it’s the law. Children Act 1989. Social Workers have to prove to a court that this option has been thoroughly exhausted before a child can be placed elsewhere on anything other than a short term basis.

No local authority in England and Wales can go against this without a change in legislation.

Foster carers do cuddle children, foster fathers do drive children in cars -

Thank you |nightowl I certainly did not know

Homeschooling is an issue. I said up thread that my neighbour home schools her child and works really hard at doing it well. Her boy has ADHD and is possibly mildly autistic (my uneducated guess!). He found school difficult and his explosive behaviour when he couldn't cope was difficult for both of the schools that he went to before he was 9. She reluctantly took him out of school, she's self employed and works from home so she's able to accommodate his needs. He's now 14, a happy outgoing boy but he'll always struggle in some circumstances. It would be a shame to ban home schooling as for some children it's a real help but it should be properly monitored. However, as I mentioned, abusive parents often terrorise their children with threats of being taken into care and how dreadful that would be, so they can protect their parents even when in the usual state system. However, I'd definitely ban any child known to social services because of abuse from being home schooled, which I believe is currently in the pipeline.

Why was the judge who oversaw all 3 proceedings name redacted from all documents when nobody had asked for that name to be redacted

Proposals on home schooling to be enacted soon which wouldand long term proposals on Children's Welfare Bill

About children being home schooled and new regulations to be brought in because of these events:

".......It comes as the government said it would introduce a new duty so

that parents need local authority consent to home-school children if the child is subject to a protection plan

Speaking earlier, Dame Rachel de Souza, the Children's Commissioner for England, said it was "madness" that the law currently allows parents to take a child out of school, even if concerns had already been raised.

The new proposals would include a child identifier, to act like an NHS number, with a requirement for every council to have multi-agency child safeguarding teams

“About 111,700 children were in home education in England on census day in autumn 2024, according to government data.

Dame Rachel said the bill should introduce a register of all children being educated at home, which does not currently exist

(The article also refers to future plans for a Children's Wellbeing Bill)
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgn8lp30ydo

petra

Why was the judge who oversaw all 3 proceedings name redacted from all documents when *nobody had asked for that name to be redacted*

I might be wrong but I think there have been requests from the press who have pushed for it petra

Also thank you nightowl. Even though I was a teacher, and had training many years ago on The Children Act 1989, I don’t remember learning that. I remember hearing that the wishes of the child should be given due consideration. Maybe I’ve forgotten, it’s a long time ago. And maybe the law should be changed, although I doubt it will be. Too much consideration is given to keeping the child within the family home, in my humble opinion, and sadly this leads to children being abused and dying over and over again.

I don’t think religion played any part in this case. The man was a violent brute. He may have used the headscarf to cover bruises, but as others have said, Baby P’s mother used chocolate to cover bruises, and other tactics are used by abusive parents. The child is asleep, the child is with grandparents, the child is unwell, and bruises are covered with clothing.

I still feel, after this long discussion, that Sara was failed by everyone who came into contact with her, no excuses. As an ex teacher I will not defend the school that failed to report every bruise, and accepted Sara’s explanations, and who accepted the case was closed and did not make a very big fuss about it, and even now, describing Sara as a happy child. No, no she was not happy. Her safest space was at school, but she was not a happy child. Then the Social Services, who closed her case without looking into it properly, and yet who knew she was at risk from before her birth, then the police who were regularly called to deal with the violence that Sharif inflicted on his victims and this went on for years. Why wasn’t he charged? Just why? And the judge in the Family Court, who must have sleepless nights now. The judge had all the information available to him/her, why on earth was she placed in her father’s care? Just why?

I actually feel quite angry about this case. As a teacher I dealt with some distressing cases. Twice children who I pulled out every stop for, fell through the net. One case went to court, and the judge said a five year old’s evidence cannot be taken as what happened or words to that effect. The police had visited me to tell me what would happen in court, but they never even called me as a witness, but I know what that child told me, and it should have been enough to convict him. He got off!

MissAdventure

It's another reason I stay away from these cases.
I'm just overwrought and probably irrational when I hear about what I consider the lists of failures surrounding them.

Baby P. Sixty times, he was seen, and the end result...?

I feel the same. It’s just a tragic travesty.

I’ll just start by saying that I do believe there are some good social workers out there and that it is a very difficult job.
However, in my past job as. Teacher and SENCO I attended a number of meetings with SS when children were judged to be “at risk.”
In my experience, very few people were willing to make the decision to remove a child from his/ her family home. Individuals had to refer to line managers who weren’t at the meetings, follow up phone calls and information received by the school were inadequate to say the least. I really hope this part of the system is better than it was back then.

Willow3
I worded my post in the wrong way.
For a name to be redacted the request comes from the named person. There has been no request from the judge.
So who has redacted the name?

sorry for misread, no I don't understand it.

Iam64

The comments from some posters that suggest faith or ethnicity issues prevented social workers from taking effective action hold more than a hint of racism.

No, posters are asking if that might have been the case.

The question is one which should not be avoided by the authorities as we have seen in previous cases.

Anniebach

Not racism, fear

Fear of appearing racist.

Harris27

I work in early years retiring in a year. How this wasn’t noticed at school and how all of the services never got contacted is beyond me. You know how a child is dirty quiet withdrawn the list goes on. Surely someone should have noticed.

Sara was not quiet or withdrawn at school. Her teachers said she was a bubbly and bright child who loved singing and dancing.
When bruises were noticed she gave answers such as having an accident etc, as she had, one would assume, been instructed by her parent.

I posted earlier that it amazes me that children who are being physically abused are often smiling.

It's the Daily Telegraph today promoted this idea about "liberal social workers" and Sara Shariff as mentioned/quoted upthread. Political bandwagon.

I have seen no evidence or basis for this claim except surmise, judging by comparable problems also mentioned upthread with many other children.