Judge’s concern at lack of secure accommodation for ‘extremely aggressive’ girl

A High Court judge has raised concern after being told that social services staff could not find a unit which could take an “extremely aggressive” 15-year-old girl who he said should be in secure accommodation.

Mr Justice Hayden has described the girl, who is in the care of a Greater Manchester council, as a risk to herself and others and said the situation was “profoundly depressing”.

He is the latest in a line of judges to raise concern about a shortage of secure accommodation for teenagers in England.

The judge heard that the girl had been locked in her bedroom for lengthy periods when very young and denied access to a toilet.

Social services staff said the trauma she suffered when small had led to her behaving in an “extremely aggressive” manner.

One social worker said she was likely to become “a dangerous young woman” without appropriate specialist care.

Council bosses had asked Mr Justice Hayden to approve the transfer of the teenager into secure accommodation, at a hearing in the Family Division of the High Court in London on Wednesday, after saying all other options had been tried.

Mr Justice Hayden gave his approval but lawyers said staff could not find a suitable unit.

He has outlined detail of the case in a written ruling published on a legal website.

The judge said the girl could not be identified but was in the care of Wigan Borough Council.

“It is profoundly depressing that having analysed the case in the way I have, the local authority has not ultimately been able to find a unit that is prepared to accommodate (her),” he said.

“Thus I find myself, once again, in a position of considering the needs of a vulnerable young person in the care of the state where the state itself is unable to meet the needs of a child which they themselves purport to parent.”

He said he aimed to review the case in the next few days.

Mr Justice Hayden heard that when she was young, the girl’s bedroom had been wired shut and one of her brothers was appointed her “gaoler” by their parents.

He said she had also witnessed the most severe abuse.

“Since her reception into care has it become clear just how bleak and desperate (her) early childhood was,” said the judge.

“It is apparent that by (her) eighth birthday, she and her siblings had each witnessed verbal, emotional and physical abuse which on my evaluation of the evidence is at the highest end of the index of gravity.

“What is also clear is that (she), as a very young child, was, for protracted periods, locked into her bedroom, sometimes by using a system of wires to secure the door.

“She was kept in confinement for such lengthy periods that her parents thought it necessary, despite her age, to put her in nappies. She was denied access to the lavatory.

“One of (her) brothers became inveigled into her abuse, effectively appointed her gaoler by the parents.”

He added: “She was probably sexually abused also.”

Lawyers representing Wigan council said the teenager had recently seriously assaulted female carers and said over the years she had caused significant injuries to staff and children.

Mr Justice Hayden said “containment” was now a “legitimate” objective.

He said council bosses had reached the “end of the line”.

The judge paid tribute to staff working with the girl.

“Notwithstanding a catalogue of assaults, some of them involving significant bruising, social workers have simply returned to work and resumed their commitment to care for (her),” he said.

“Social workers often attract criticism and public disapproval; here the balance must be redressed. The professionalism and dedication that I have read about in this case, shown by care workers on modest salaries and with limited support, requires to be acknowledged.”

Shortage of secure accommodation for children highlighted by judges

The most senior family court judge in England and Wales raised concern about a shortage of secure accommodation units in England for children more than a year ago.

Sir James Munby, president of the Family Division of the High Court, said in October 2016 that the problem had led to social services bosses at councils in England trying to place children in their care in secure accommodation units in Scotland.

He highlighted the issue in a written analysis of cases involving two children.

Sir James did not identify the two children but said the cases involved Cumbria County Council and Blackpool Borough Council.

”These particular issues arise because of the shortage of places in secure accommodation units in England, so that local authorities and courts in England, particularly in the north of England … look to making use of available places in secure accommodation units in Scotland,” said Sir James.

”Precise data are not available, but such material (including anecdotal material) as exists suggests that there have been at least five such cases.”

A number of lower-ranking judges in England have also raised concerns about the shortage of secure accommodation for children.

In the summer of 2014 Judge Sarah Singleton warned of a ”terrible national shortage” of places in secure units for dangerous youngsters.

She said there was a ”gross shortage of resource” which created a ”lack of protection for the public”.

The judge made her comments in a written analysis of a case involving a 15-year-old boy who had a ”terrifying” history of violence, following a family court hearing in Lancaster.

In December 2014 a High Court judge highlighted a ”striking” lack of secure accommodation in Birmingham.

Mr Justice Nicol said Birmingham City Council appeared to have no secure accommodation units for children and was dependent on arrangements with other local authorities.

The judge made his comments in a ruling on a legal challenge launched by a teenager at a High Court hearing in London.

In 2015 Judge Laura Harris told of her ”great concern” about the lack of suitable secure accommodation for a 14-year-old girl who was said to be beyond parental control and at significant risk of harm.

The judge, who analysed the girl’s case at a family court hearing in London, said there appeared to be a ”real and ongoing problem” which was putting vulnerable youngsters and members of the public at risk.

_{Copyright (c) Press Association Ltd. 2017, All Rights Reserved.}