Parents given ‘too many chances’ over care kids

PARENTS of children taken into care are given too many second chances, MSPs will be told today. According to foster carers, children are being further damaged by uncertainty of the often lengthy process of deciding if they should be permanently removed from their family or not.

The views of Barnardo’s Scotland and the NSPCC (National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children) came after a study found two thirds of Glasgow children who return to their birth families after a period in care will be taken into care again. In a majority of these cases, it was found care becomes the long term arrangement.

The NSPCC also had concerns about children who are taken into care being returned to their parents is often only delaying the inevitable and further damaging the child in the meantime.

The charity pointed to further evidence in Glasgow where an audit found only half of the authority’s looked after children who were returned to their birth parents were still with them four years later.

Richard Meade, Barnardo’s public affairs officer, said in a written submission: “Our foster carers have concerns about the optimistic approach taken by social work departments towards birth parents.

“They believe they are given too long, too many second chances, which from their experience leaves children with an uncertain future and all the stress and challenges that come with it.

“Their experience is many of these children often end up being permanently removed.

“The foster carers agreed decisions need to be made sooner, and that the overly optimistic approach to birth parents needs to be reconsidered.

“They believe the rights of the child should take precedence over the parents’ rights.”

A pilot in Glasgow, comparing the current ‘enhanced care’ approach with an ‘Intervention Model’ from New Orleans, which takes a more rigorous approach to assessing and intervening in families of maltreated young children, is being evaluated.

NSPCC Scotland wants committee members to visit Glasgow to meet the team delivering the New Orleans Model in the city.