Davidson calls on SNP to ‘press the pause button’ on named person scheme

By The Press Association30th March 2016News ScotlandChild Protection, Looked After Children, Named Person Scheme, News Scotland, Young People / Youth Work, Youth Work

Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson has called for the SNP to “press the pause button” on plans to introduce a named person for every child in Scotland.

Ms Davidson met campaigners and parents concerned about the scheme, which will see every youngster under the age of 18 assigned a single point of contact, such as a teacher or health visitor, to look out for their welfare.

The Scottish Government says the service, which is currently the subject of a legal challenge, will act as a safety net to help families and children if they need it but opponents argue the move breaches the human rights of parents.

Ms Davidson said many parents are “deeply uneasy” about the policy, while professionals including social workers, teachers and others are unsure about how it will work in practice.

She said concerns have also been raised by police that the mandatory nature of the scheme would spread resources too thinly, taking them away from the most vulnerable children.

But during her visit to a cafe in the Perthshire village of Abernethy, the S cottish Police Federation (SPF) backed the policy, saying it believes it will help keep children safer.

Ms Davidson was also challenged by the SNP to explain why her party did not vote against the Children and Young People (Scotland) Bill in 2014, which contained the named person scheme.

She said: “My issue has been, particularity with Nicola (Sturgeon) muddying the waters, saying that it’s fine as a parent you don’t have to speak to your named person, but that doesn’t mean your child doesn’t have one and they aren’t collecting information on you and your family without either your input or consent, and I think that is worrying to people .

“We tabled amendments, we tried to get opt-outs for parents on this and we were voted down by the SNP. There is no opt-out for families, if you have a child from August the state is going to impose a named person on that child.

“I think that the illiberal nature and the interference in families is one thing, but the real issue is that by spreading our resources so thin we’re taking it away from the kids that need it most.

“My strong urge to the Scottish Government, to Nicola Sturgeon, to the SNP, is we have fought this in every way and they have voted us down and shouted us down at every turn.

“Only now are parents waking up to how big an intrusion this is. Let’s press the pause button on this, let’s not introduce it across the country in August, let’s get back round the table and find a way to best allocate resources to the young people who are vulnerable and in at-risk situations in our country that need the most.”

Rosalind McCall, 46, a mother of two teenage daughters from Auchterarder, said she is concerned about interference in her family life.

She said: ” There’s nothing we can do about it. If that ball starts rolling and if teachers and guardians take it upon themselves to go down that route, I’m powerless to stop it.

“Can somebody please explain to me how I’m meant to opt out of this? There’s nothing I can do to opt out of this. I have to accept the fact that if I opt out in any shape, form or size this will go on without my knowledge, I have to be involved.”

Joy Knight, 70, a former teacher and chair of the Children’s Panel Advisory Group from Scone, added: “I think we have all the belts and braces in place that we need. We’ve got the police, we’ve got teachers, we’ve got doctors. It will cause, I think, a logjam of children’s problems.”

An SNP spokesman said: “If Ruth Davidson thinks that the named person scheme is so bad then she should explain why she told her party not to vote against it – it was passed unopposed by the Scottish Parliament by 103 votes to zero.

“This is naked political opportunism from a political party void of any constructive political ideas for Scotland’s future.”

Calum Steele, general s ecretary of the SPF, said: ” The Scottish Police Federation supports the named person proposals.

“We believe it will help keep children safer as a range of professionals (including front-line and community police officers) working together offers opportunities to pick up potential problems at an earlier stage; and by doing so can help to keep more children out of the justice system.”

The SNP spokesman added: “Public workers such as teachers and health visitors have an existing duty of care towards young people – all the named person does is ensure that parents have a single point of contact if they need it. Parents are entitled to advice from a named person but they are under no obligation to follow that advice.

“The policy is an important part of trying to ensure that, as far as possible, children do not come to harm. It is about supporting, not diminishing, the role of parents – and has already been upheld by the highest court in Scotland, including a ruling which said the policy had ‘no effect whatsoever on the legal, moral or social relationships within the family’.”