Social workers meet amid Baby P row

Jul 9 2009

Children's Secretary Ed Balls is due to speak to the bosses of England's social workers at their first national conference since the public outcry over the death of Baby Peter.

He will address the Association of Directors of Children's Services (ADCS) in Manchester, just months after he came under fire for sacking council bosses in Haringey over the death of the 17-month-old boy.

Baby P - Peter - died in August 2007, with more than 50 injuries inflicted by his mother, her boyfriend and their lodger, despite being on Haringey's child protection register and being visited at least 60 times.

Mr Balls sent inspectors into the local authority, with two serious case reviews finding a string of "serious concerns" about Haringey's child protection services, which they described as "inadequate".

The child's death "could and should have been prevented" but agencies lacked "thoroughness and urgency" by not taking the 17-month-old into care.

The review concluded that if doctors, lawyers, police officers and social workers had adopted a more urgent, thorough and challenging approach, the case would have been stopped in its tracks at the first serious incident.

Mr Balls sacked Sharon Shoesmith, director of children's services at the council, from her post. She lost an internal appeal against her dismissal in January.

Four more social work staff, including Ms Shoesmith's deputy, were dismissed by the council.

However David Clark, head of the Society of Local Authority Chief Executives, later criticised Mr Balls for "pillorying" social workers and "pandering" to a media "feeding frenzy" calling for heads to roll.

Peter's mother, 27, was given an indefinite sentence with a minimum term of five years at the Old Bailey in May after pleading guilty to causing or allowing her son's death. Her boyfriend was given a 12-year sentence for his role in Peter's death. He was also jailed for life with a minimum term of 10 years for the rape of a two-year-old girl.