New Integrity is quoted in The Guardian today, responding to a BBC
documentary about the satanic abuse case in Rochdale in the 1990s, in
which several children were wrongly taken from their families.
We said: "There were at least four contributing factors to the Rochdale [case]: (1) the capacity and willingness of the social workers to discern reality; (2) the framework of social work practice, which suggested specific actions; (3) the broader culture within which these actions can be credible and supported by others, particularly the media; and (4) the legal system and structures which can uphold the actions of the social worker, in the face of absence of evidence and the families' persistent claims of innocence. Ever more thorough checking and conferring among social workers is constantly being legislated for, and accepted as an obligation, within the profession. However, stigmatising social work must be avoided. Distrust from the public and the media is a hugely inhibiting factor in a social workers' ability to care properly. The deaths from abuse of Victoria Climbié and other children were partly due to decisions not to interfere in clearly dysfunctional families. This points to the need to free social workers from huge caseloads and unreasonable pressures".
The full text of the quote can be found here:
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