Social worker suspended after children suffered burns in house fire

Susie Eskandari was given a 12-month ban by the Scottish Social Services Council after failing to remove four children from their home.

A social worker has been suspended after three children in her care suffered burns in a fire at their home.

A hearing on Wednesday heard that Susie Eskandari, 48, failed to implement Place of Safety Warrants to remove four children from a household that was deemed dangerous.

Shortly afterwards the family home was engulfed in a fire, resulting in one of the children suffering “serious burns” and two others receiving minor burns.

The social worker, who worked for the City of Edinburgh Council at the time, has been suspended for 12 months after she admitted misconduct by failing to act on a ruling by a Children’s Hearing and take the four children – named AM, BM, CM, and DM – to a place of safety.

The ruling came from the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) conduct sub-committee in Dundee.

Convenor Callum Laurie read out the four-person panel’s conclusions.

He said: “The failure by the registrant to implement Place of Safety Warrants to one family subsequently meant three of the children were harmed – one of which suffering serious burns.

“The fire in which the children were harmed occurred on December 29, 2005, while the registrant was on leave. She was suspended on her return to work.

“The consequences of her actions were very serious and she accepted that the children were harmed because of her failure to implement the order.”

However, the sub-committee explained that the “very serious” incident did not merit imposing a life-ban on Ms Eskandari.

Mr Laurie highlighted a number of failings by the City of Edinburgh Council as mitigating factors for the incident.

He said: “The City of Edinburgh Council Children and Families team was a very busy team, especially with Child Protection work at the time of the incident. The team was under stress and pressure, and there were limitations of support to the registrant.

“We heard evidence from head of service development Pam Smith who wrote to Eskandari to express: ‘My conclusion is that your blindness precludes that you shouldn’t be working with very vulnerable children at risk of abuse or neglect without expert assistance.’

“Another report commissioned by her legal defence team questioned the wisdom of a blind social worker dealing with a child protection case without expert supervision.”

The sub-committee ruled that banning Ms Eskandari from the profession would have been “disproportionate in the circumstances.”

Mr Laurie added: “The seriousness of the misconduct did not justify removal. She has demonstrated genuine regret and remorse for the incident and the consequences it had for the family concerned.

“During the hearing she conceded in evidence that she did not feel confident to work in any area of social work, especially without training. She has attempted top take rehabilitative and corrective steps, which has show her willingness to take appropriate steps.

“A suspension order achieves the sufficient protection levels for service users and the public and gives her an opportunity to take stock of her career options.”

Eskandari was dismissed by the local authority on October 9, 2006, for gross misconduct.

During the hearing solicitor Maree Allison, representing the SSSC, argued that Eskandari’s “lack of insight and lack of regret” should result in her being removed from the social workers’ register.

Mrs Allison said: “The impact of her actions resulted in children being harmed and the council has concerns over her ability to practice as a social worker given her understanding of areas of legislation that are taught at the entry level qualification into the profession.

“Given that she didn’t ensure she was aware and understanding fully the potential outcome of a Children’s Hearing, her behaviour amounts to gross negligence. Her failings had a significant impact on service users, in that they were harmed, and her actions are fundamentally incompatible to being a social worker.

“Removal from the register is the only appropriate action in this case in order to protect the public.

“The sub-committee’s decision in this case will send a message out to the profession on the standards that all social service workers are required to adhere to, and the serious view taken against those who do not adhere to the standards.”

However, the sub-committee imposed a 12-month suspension order on Ms Eskandari. She now has 14 days to appeal the decision.

Since the case, the City of Edinburgh Council have put a new system in place to make sure the same situation does not happen again.

A spokesman for the local authority said: “We put a system in place some time ago to ensure that warrants are implemented on the same day they are issued. If for some reason this does not happen, the issue is automatically flagged up straight away and addressed by senior staff.”