Social worker ‘left kids at risk of violence’

A SENIOR social worker falsified records to show she had made 70 visits to children at the ‘highest level of risk’ when she had not seen them at all, a hearing was told.

Charon Salisbury was assigned eight youngsters on the child protection register, but delegated them to a student social worker who was not authorised to carry out the checks, it was said.

And the student only conducted a ‘small portion’ of the visits, leaving the children exposed to an ‘extremely high risk of violence’ in their homes, the General Social Care Council heard.

Salisbury then entered the information into Plymouth City Council’s computer system, giving the impression that she had made the fortnightly visits herself between October 2007 and March 2008.

The social worker is now facing 11 charges of misconduct and could be struck off if a panel of her regulating body finds her guilty.

Salisbury, who is not attending the hearing yesterday, admits not making the visits herself, but maintains her student social worker, Monique Roberts, made them on her behalf.

In a letter to the GSCC she claims she thought this was accepted practice, and that her manager, Margaret Bersey, was aware of what she was doing.

Giving evidence yesterday Miss Bersey refuted the allegation and insisted: “Miss Salisbury was fully aware of what student social workers were allowed to do and what they what they were not allowed to do.

“These children were at the highest level of risk, which is why they had been assigned to a senior social worker, who in this case was Miss Salisbury.

“There was an extremely high risk of violence in these households and we were looking at going to court to secure the removal of these children from the family home.

“Plymouth takes safeguarding children very seriously, and they would not accept anyone other than a qualified social worker undertaking these visits.

“Students can’t, as they are not experienced enough.”

Salisbury further claims that her action in entering the details of the visits on the council’s computer system was not misleading, as the visits had been made.

She said she lacked the IT training to alter the records in the way alleged.

Ben FitzGerald, for the GSCC, said: “It is the council’s case that the evidence shows that Salisbury should have known, and did know, that it was not allowed for a student social worker to conduct these visits: indeed, that not all these visits were made.

“In fact, only a small portion were done by the student social worker, and by her actions Salisbury was misleading.”

Salisbury, from Plymouth, admits that she was the allocated social worker for the eight children, who were all on the child protection register, but denies that her entries on the computer system indicated she had completed the visits when she had not.

The hearing continues.