Friday, July 13, 2007

Let's Go Round Again ...

Bradford Crown Court heard that social workers had visited the family after hearing concerns from neighbours, but no action was taken.

Ambulance staff found Leticia Aalayah Wright lying on the living room floor of her home. She was covered in bruises, both old and new, the court heard. Nicholas Campbell QC, prosecuting, said: "The cause of death was multiple injuries and they were mainly forceful blows to Leticia's head and to her abdomen. These injuries had been inflicted between two and three days before she died. She had suffered other injuries over a longer period than that".


I wonder what odds I can get from William Hill that the enquiry will call for "greater communication" between the 193 State agencies involved and that the local authority will announce that "new procedures have been put in place".

"Procedures", of course, are what you have when you don't have a culture.

6 comments:

DJ said...

That's all very well and good, but what I want to know is this: were 'lessons learned' ?

Anonymous said...

"...social workers had visited the family after hearing concerns from neighbours, but no action was taken."

Well, if you wanted action, why would you call social workers?

Unless of course the allegations related to open-air Satanic abuse in the depths of winter in the Orkneys. Then they'd go in like gangbusters....

My heart goes out to those ambulance staff. I think if I were them, walking in on that scene, I'd find a whole new use for that defibrillation equipment....

Anonymous said...

One thing I don't get.

A businessman round my way was recently jailed for costcutting and negligence leading to the death of an employee.

I don't have a problem with that.

However, our local Social Services are averaging one child death from similar incompetence a year, or so.

But no action of any sort is ever taken. They aren't even dismissed, let alone prosecuted.

You may remember Victoria Climbie. Her "Social Worker" was sacked. Then reinstated, on appeal.

Anonymous said...

This sad tale tells us why the married parent family unit is the most secure structure for rearing children. Children are at the greatest risk of abuse, physical or sexual, from what used to be euphemistically termed 'uncle.'

Anonymous said...

Don't know what you're all moaning about. Back to the Victorian heyday - workhouse and Dotheboys Hall???

As the thermo-fascists like to say, "get over it, the argument's settled". Do-the-young-persons Hall got nationalised, and properly staffed.

Good enough!

glad thereafter said...

I would prefer to phrase it:

"Procedures", of course, are what you have when you don't have a community.

'Cultures' are ten (or even hundred) a penny in our cities, but 'communities' - to the extent that they impose the higher-level moral values on members are increasingly rare.

If you choose to fight the localist battle on 'cultural' terrain, you will lose. Locals have none they think worth protecting. (Incomers have dozens.) But locals can be inspired by their family and friends; community.

Civilisation is community before it is culture. Having lost both we must regain the base.