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County Hall pledge to win back its stars

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http://www.stopinjusticenow.com/News_0697.htm
We will win back our four-star rating - that was the pledge from County Hall bosses following a disappointing review of its children’s services department. Earlier this year Norfolk County Council was awarded the coveted four stars by the Audit Commission for its overall performance. However, next year one of those stars will be lost because the council’s children’s services department has fallen from a good grade three to an adequate grade two following an inspection by the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted). Although the council insists the loss of the four star status will not see it punished financially, they will be striving to regain the star the council looks set to lose when the annual performance assessment is done in February. The council’s children’s services department has had a difficult year, with a growing number of schools in special measures, including some in Norwich, record numbers of children in care and problems in improving performance at GCSE. But Lisa Christensen, the council’s director of children’s services, said her department was striving to improve and outlined work which was in place to help tackle the schools which have gone into special measures. She said: We are dedicated to improving the lives of children and young people in Norfolk and have evidence that we are making real progress in a number of areas to transform the way services to families and children are delivered in the county. Our overall grade has dropped from last year despite the fact that we have improved or maintained performance in the majority of our performance indicators and it is clear that there is more work to do. Ofsted’s ruling is disappointing but we will not let it detract from our determination to improve the opportunities and outcomes for all of Norfolk’s children. That work is already in hand.

Ian Walton,
Fighting For Justice In The Family Courts!
Only The Strong Survive, Positive Mental Attitude.
The Truth will Win Through!

Church of England publishes full protocol and guidance on child protection

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http://www.stopinjusticenow.com/News_0696.htm
Following public criticism, several embarrassing cases resurfacing from the past and a painstaking subsequent review of procedure, the Church of England has published its “model protocol” for handling child protection cases.
The publication follows the announcement of the key principles of the review of past child protection cases by Church of England dioceses on 25 October 2007.
The House of Bishops Standing Committee finalised the protocol at its recent meeting, the Church announced yesterday.

Ian Walton,
Fighting For Justice In The Family Courts!
Only The Strong Survive, Positive Mental Attitude.
The Truth will Win Through!

Report finds child begging up by 30%

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http://www.stopinjusticenow.com/News_0695.htm
Sightings of child begging increased by 30 per cent in the last year, a study has found. The number recorded nationwide in 2006/2007 was 1,083 compared with 756 in 2005/2006, according to the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (ISPCC). The research, carried out by the ISPCC’s Leanbh programme which protects children at risk on the streets, is being used as part of a public awareness campaign launched today to highlight the dangers of child begging. Leanbh manager Mary Nicholson said the hike was due to both a change in legislation making it no longer illegal for adults to beg and the growing numbers of Roma in Ireland. “The statistics from the Leanbh service show that there has been a significant increase in sightings of children begging,” she said. “During the last year, there has been a shift in the profile of child begging. “Due to recent changes in legislation it is no longer illegal for an adult to beg. “However, under the 2001 Children Act, child begging represents a serious child protection concern that puts children at risk on every level, whether they are begging alone or with an adult,” she said. The key message in the campaign is ‘Giving Money Is Not The Answer’.

Ian Walton,
Fighting For Justice In The Family Courts!
Only The Strong Survive, Positive Mental Attitude.
The Truth will Win Through!

WE HAVE JUSTICE FOR OUR STEPHEN

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http://www.stopinjusticenow.com/News_0694.htm
Parents of a vulnerable man beaten to death by his unofficial carer today branded his killer an “evil, wicked man”. Stephen Gale, who had special needs, was subjected to months of torment, violence, starvation and abuse by Andrew Green at their shared home in Mowmacre Hill, Leicester. Yesterday, Mr Gale’s family cheered in court as Green was jailed for nearly 23 years. Mr Gale’s mother Maureen, 55, said: “Green is an evil, wicked man. We are absolutely elated that he got more than 22 years and we feel we have got justice for the family and for Stephen. “I especially loved it when the judge said, ‘take him down’ and he was led away to start his sentence. “It’s been a year now since we lost our son and nothing will ever bring him back, but he is safe and at rest now.” When he died, the 28-year-old weighed less than six stone, half the normal body weight for his 5ft 11ins frame. A final fatal attack on October 25 last year left Mr Gale with a catalogue of injuries. As Stephen’s body lay on the floor of the shared home in Garth Avenue, Green callously ordered his wife, Claudette (31), and housemate, Lisa Smith (27), to lie to police, blaming someone else for the injuries. Green (41), who admitted murder, was the bullying “leader of the pack,” of the shared dysfunctional household. He controlled the finances, and took Steven’s benefit money and cash sent by Mr and Mrs Gale, of Little Hampton, Sussex, who had no idea of their son’s terrifying ordeal. Nirmal Shant, prosecuting, said neighbours had seen Green, and occasionally the two women, attacking the victim in the street. She said Stephen once tried to escape a beating by leaping out of an upstairs window, but he did not complain of mistreatment. He died from multiple injuries, internal bleeding and shock. Miss Shant said: “The fatal attack was sustained. He fell to the ground and continued to be attacked, trying what little he could to defend himself and was left for dead for some time before the ambulance was called.” Green, who has an IQ of 72, in the bottom three per cent of the population, told police another man had attacked Mr Gale away from the home. He told officers: “I was like a carer for Steve and looked after him for so long. He meant the world to me.”

Ian Walton,
Fighting For Justice In The Family Courts!
Only The Strong Survive, Positive Mental Attitude.
The Truth will Win Through!

Government under fire after three new data mix-ups

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http://www.stopinjusticenow.com/News_0693.htm
A FURTHER series of embarrassing losses involving confidential personal data put new pressure on the government yesterday. First, it emerged two computer discs with details of more than 7,000 Northern Ireland motorists had got lost in the post after being sent to the DVLA in Swansea. Then it was disclosed that confidential personal details of dozens of prisoners, including their criminal records, had been delivered to a private company instead of going to Norfolk Police. And trade unions on Merseyside revealed that personal details of 1,800 health-authority staff, including their salaries and pension details, had been accidentally sent out to a number of private firms. The latest security breaches followed the loss by HM Revenue and Customs of two computer discs containing the entire child benefit database, with details of 25 million people.

Ian Walton,
Fighting For Justice In The Family Courts!
Only The Strong Survive, Positive Mental Attitude.
The Truth will Win Through!

From the vaults

Full Article and Credits:
http://www.stopinjusticenow.com/News_0692.htm
Thirty years ago * A report on Community Care’s “Off Load” page (Backchat’s venerable predecessor) paints a more racy and less politically correct picture of the social care past. An unnamed but “extremely handsome” social services director was reported as falling foul of one “raven-haired Jezebel”. The article quoted the director as describing his beau as a “gorgeous bit of fluff”, before detailing the breakdown of the relationship. Apparently, she told our lovelorn leader “To get your fuckin’ bollocks out of here”, to which our social care boss replied with a fist. The court took a dim view and ordered the social services director out of the shared flat and to take his goldfish with him. The woes continued when the director forgot that responsibility for homeless people had been transferred from his department to housing - which took a dim view of his antics. Still, I presume being “extremely handsome” meant that he had no problem finding a place to sleep. Can you imagine the current crop of social services chiefs being involved in such a scandal? * Twenty years ago Every journalist’s fear, a 31 December issue (yes we had to work through Christmas during the height of Thatcherism), had an editorial outlining several child abuse inquiries and pointing out that 1987 was another poor year for child care. It also highlighted the discovery of a “new phenomenon”: child sexual abuse. This was defined as either “deliberate exploitation for pornographic purposes” or sexual abuse by a member or friend of the family. The conclusions of the inquests and reviews are familiar: “Workers under intolerable pressureforced to make difficult decisionstoo few resources”. The editorial ends with a call for more training and powers, and to entertain the idea of a single agency to deal with child abuse. Twenty years on and the call for more training and resources remains a familiar refrain. * Ten years ago That well-known Christmas conundrum was written about by columnist Yasmin Alibhai-Brown: whether to send Christmas cards to your friends who follow other religions and involve them in the festivities, or do you assume they wouldn’t want to? This question still exercises the brain cells of many councils. Some ignore the problem others ignore Christmas. Some pioneering councils even risk ridicule by creating their own festival, giving it a non-Christian theme, leaving out the nativity play but keeping the presents and decorations. This reminds me of the Jerry Seinfeld episode where George and Frank Costanza (George’s father) celebrate “Festivus” on 23 December with such rituals as the Airing of Greivences (”I’ve got a lot of problems with you people, and now you’re going to hear about it!”), the Christmas aluminium pole (instead of a decorated tree), and Feats of Strength where the head of the household challenges all comers to a wrestling match (”George, didn’t your Dad used to wrestle you to the ground.

Ian Walton,
Fighting For Justice In The Family Courts!
Only The Strong Survive, Positive Mental Attitude.
The Truth will Win Through!

Child trafficking and slavery in the UK

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http://www.stopinjusticenow.com/News_0691.htm
The two brothers walked through our office doors at Afruca - Africans Unite Against Child Abuse. Sobbing, they recounted details of their terrible experiences spanning many years at the hands of various relatives to whom they were sent as children for a “better life” by their mother following the death of their father in Nigeria. They ended up as domestic slaves.
Now in their mid-twenties, the two young men have spent the bulk of their lives in the UK in abject penury. Denied the opportunity of a decent education, they are now homeless, jobless and unable to produce any documentation as proof of their identities. Effectively, they are in limbo, living from hand to mouth, not sure of their next meal or their next bed for the night. These two young men are part of a growing underclass of young people trafficked into the UK as child slaves.
Over the past six months, as a result of a media campaign ran by Afruca on African satellite TV stations, we have continued to receive young people who have tales of woe similar to the two brothers. We have supported at least 15 young people in various ways since January 2007 to enable them deal with the impact of trafficking and exploitation so they can move on with their lives. While all their stories are different, their experiences of abuse and exploitation as domestic slaves are very similar. More and more young people are coming to us for help, evidence of the growing phenomenon of child domestic slavery in this country.
Our experience is supported by recent research into child trafficking. A recent report produced by the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP) identified 330 victims of trafficking, a third of them coming from different African countries with most of them destined for domestic slavery. This is corroborated by the results of another study on child trafficking in the north of England by ECPAT UK.
Nigerian problem?
Without wishing to stigmatise any community, it is pertinent to add that all the 15 victims mentioned above, including the two brothers, are of Nigerian origin. In the same vein, all the victims of domestic slavery identified in the two research reports referred to above are also all from Nigeria. As a Nigerian myself, this fact is quite disconcerting. Why are Nigerian children being trafficked into the UK for domestic slavery?
The practice of using children for domestic servitude is undoubtedly a very common phenomenon in Nigeria itself. According to local non-governmental organisations campaigning against this practice, almost every middle class household employs domestic servants many of whom are children. Due to the growing poverty level, the widening gap between rich and poor Nigerians, many parents are wont to give their children to better off relatives in the belief that they will be well looked after and given an opportunity of either going to school or learning a vocation. However, most of these children end up being used as slaves and servants.
Yet the idea of giving children away to relatives is nothing new or strange in many African countries. The practice of fostering, where children are given to relatives to look after is not an act borne out of cruelty or ignorance. In the past, this system has afforded many children from poor backgrounds the opportunity of a good education leading to a prosperous future. The notion that it takes a village to raise a child meant that the extended family were responsible for ensuring children had access to a decent life which their poor parents were unable to give them. Unfortunately, this system of community support has been abused by unscrupulous individuals with ulterior motives. The sad case of Victoria Climbie, the Ivorien girl trafficked into the UK and tortured to death by her relative comes to mind here.
The estimated two million Nigerians here are probably the most rooted nationals from any African country in the UK, bearing in mind that many have been living or visiting the country since the 1960s and 1970s. With a growing middle class population, it is not surprising that the practice of fostering is equally taking hold here as well. Unfortunately, however, many children and their parents have been deceived into coming to the UK for a so-called better life and a good education. Instead, these children end up being used as slaves, to look after the families of their exploiters and cater for their every need. Many have been subjected to a life of suffering, multiple abuse, excessive child labour and harm. Instead of the better life and the good education promised, only a childhood of exploitation awaits.
The physical abuse experienced in many cases result in long-term poor health. Some of the victims we worked with at Afruca were also sexually abused by their exploiters. Most terrible of all is the rupture with their own families. A young girl we supported was brought into the UK at the age of nine years. Now at the age of 19 she has never been in touch with any member of her immediate family as she was prevented from doing so by her exploiters. It is doubtful whether she will ever be able to locate them.

Ian Walton,
Fighting For Justice In The Family Courts!
Only The Strong Survive, Positive Mental Attitude.
The Truth will Win Through!

Community group fears closure

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http://www.stopinjusticenow.com/News_0690.htm
A NORTHSIDE community group that provides vital adult education and training services fears it may be forced to close if a major Government childcare scheme comes into force next year. Trinity Adult Resource Group for Education and Training (TARGET), which operates out of St Kevins National School, Donaghmede, said the proposed new Childcare Subvention Scheme could devastate their services. The new scheme will mean that community childcare services will receive financial support to enable them to provide reduced childcare fees to parents who are in receipt of social welfare payments and Family Income Supplement (FIS). However, such subventions will not be available in respect of parents who are not in receipt of those payments, meaning low-income working families will be forced to shell out for costly childcare facilities. Local groups and public representatives said this could force many parents out of work and onto the social welfare system and make many community education and employment groups redundant. Speaking to Northside People, Heidi Bedell, Community Employment (CE) supervisor at TARGET, said the group would be under enormous pressure to continue providing all its services. Ms Bedell said Government funding currently allows TARGET to operate a free drop in creche centre for parents who wish to avail of one of its courses or to go back to work. She said that if this funding is taken away from the group and provided only to parents on social welfare to cover their childcare costs, TARGET would lose a huge section of people taking part in their courses. The new system will mean we will no longer be able to offer our free drop-in creche, Ms Bedell stated. This has the potential to completely devastate TARGET and our group could be lost to the community altogether. Ms Bedell has urged Minister for Children, Brendan Smith, to reconsider the plan. The current system of funding has been really good for us, she added. It allows us to employ two permanent childcare workers for the creche, and the majority of the other services we provide are reliant on this. Speaking at a recent private Dail debate on the issue, Dublin North East TD Terence Flanagan (FG) pleaded with Minister Smith to rethink the Childcare Subvention Scheme.

Ian Walton,
Fighting For Justice In The Family Courts!
Only The Strong Survive, Positive Mental Attitude.
The Truth will Win Through!

Call for more alcohol abuse cash

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http://www.stopinjusticenow.com/News_0689.htm
Experts debating how to tackle substance abuse in Scotland will hear that more money needs to be spent on reducing alcoholism. Dr Bruce Ritson will say that funding is often focused on drug addicts. But the chairman of Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems believes drink causes just as many social and health difficulties. He will be speaking at the Glasgow Addiction Services Christmas conference in Clydebank. Dr Ritson also feels GPs and hospital staff should be taught how to recognise alcohol abuse at an early stage, and give advice on getting help. The conference will also hear from Community Safety Minister Fergus Ewing who will focus on the challenges ahead, along with child protection issues.

Ian Walton,
Fighting For Justice In The Family Courts!
Only The Strong Survive, Positive Mental Attitude.
The Truth will Win Through!