Subject of scrutiny

[Subject of scrutiny]

Hi thanks for having me,
My story is a bit long winded but here I go. A few years back I was surprisingly arrested for allegations of child S/A! Turns out my mums ex boyfriends old wife and children(kind of an old step mum and sisters to me) had made up a story about me, and had gone to the police and made statements. To mine and my solicitors surprise they actually decided to charge with with up to 10 charges relating to it! So a trial date was set! But as the trial happened their story fell apart, in fact her and her mum told completely different stories, the trial was basically over at that point and I hadn’t even given my evidence! But because it was a 10 man jury, the show had to go on! The judge gave the jury 6 hours to reach a verdict, yet the jury was back after just 10-15 minutes (not guilty on all charges!) Years pass and I get with a new partner, one night she gets drunk with her friend who she is worried about DV in their relationship, so they decide to do Claire’s/saras law for her but she said she would only do one if my partner did aswel! Subsequently she had contact from the police telling them they hold information she needs to know, (yes I was a little scrote in my younger years and I also suffer full blown adhd,but I haven’t been convicted of a crime in nearly 20 years) so they disclose some information to her and the main one was the false accusations made by previous family member (I had told her about the events that happened already way before disclosure) yet she comes back crazy as hell telling me to jog on! Turns out the information they hold on the matter is completely false! Because according to them I hadn’t been to court yet, and it’s still open for me to be prosecuted when the so called victim feels brave enough to stand and give evidence?! No information about the lies they told and not even anotice of acquittal! Subsequently social services got involved and partners child is now on child protection register and I’m not allowed unsupervised contact with her! She has been on this plan for 10 months now and social have done absolutely nothing in that time! The first social worker with us for 6 months, attempted to complete a risk assessment on me but was unable to find any information on me as there is none held! The tried probation, police, medical records, mental health and many more! He got to the point where he was going to stand it down to a child in need, but the teacher objected and asked for an up to date report from mental health services before she was happy with the step down to a CIN! I fully complied and a report was done, I was deemed low risk in all categories! During the time of getting the report done, we had a sudden change in social worker so we thought the last social worker’s work would be continued but the new social worker’s plan was to start the same process again! Me and my partner were very frustrated but we complied! The new social worker hit the same stumbling blocks due to the lack of information held on me, they went to the same agencies and were told the same! Now I’m being asked to do a risk assessment with a 3rd party company! I have so many questions! Do I have the right to refuse the assessment?, what are the likely consequences if I do not want to participate? What would be socials next move? Why has it taken 10 months and 2 completed risk assessments to get to this point where we’re at now? Also after 9 months of them doing nothing but telling me I need to prove my story, I called crown court and was told all they hold is an acquittal notice, which I told social worker about so they actually know the information the police hold were lies but that doesn’t seem to be enough and they say it’s because the number of charges the police brought against me so being found not guilty doesn’t make any difference, because in there words it could have been because of a technicality! It’s been a long burnt out process and my soul is tired from it now I just want to find a solution! Thanks for listening

[Suzie, FRG Adviser]

Dear Subject of Scrutiny,

Thank you for your post and welcome to the Parents’ Forum.

My name is Suzie and I am an online adviser replying to you today.

You explain that you were charged and tried for ten charges of sexual offences in the recent past and the subsequent court case ended in your acquittal.

Your partner was already aware of this history from you but was formally notified when she submitted a domestic violence disclosure scheme (sometimes referred to as Clare’s Law. You can read more this here).

Children’s services were notified as your partner has a child in her care. Children’s services have a duty to make enquiries if they receive any information that suggests that a child could have experienced or be at risk of significant harm. You point out that there were factual errors in children’s services’ report of the criminal charges and your acquittal but you have recently provided clarification of these points.

You can read more about child protection procedures here.

Please be aware that questions asked within criminal law enquiries and questions addressed for child protection procedures are very different in nature. A police investigation or criminal trial must consider whether there is enough evidence against the person accused. A child protection investigation decides whether there is any risk that a child could come to harm and what steps are needed to keep them living safely at home. The child’s best interests and safety are always the main consideration.

You explain that your partner's child is now on a child protection plan which you can read more about here. The plan states that your partner’s child cannot have unsupervised contact with you. The plan has been in place for 10 months. The previous social worker considered changing the plan from child protection to child in need. (You can read more about child in need plans here.) However, another professional involved, the child’s teacher, questioned this approach and requested further information from mental health services. A risk assessment was conducted and it seemed likely that the plan would change from child protection to child in need.

There has now been a change of social worker, and you have once again been asked to undertake a fresh risk assessment to be undertaken by a specialist agency this time. You describe your feelings of frustration about this.

I can only advise you to continue to work collaboratively with children’s services and the practitioner who will be undertaking the new assessment. You should ask for the time frames and schedule involved in the new assessment so that you can prepare, be aware of where you are in the process and fully participate. Lucy Faithfull Foundation are a specialist agency who advise families and professionals where there is concern about risk of sexual harm. You can link to their website here. You may find useful resources on their website and they also have a helpline.

You may also find the Family Rights Group guide to working with social workers helpful now that you are building a working relationship with the new social worker here.
I hope this information was useful to you.
There are many different ways to contact Family Rights Group if you seek further advice in the future:

• A free telephone advice line open Monday to Friday between 9.30am and 3pm (excluding Bank Holidays) on 0808 801 0366
• Easy-to-follow online information. Features include an A-Z, FAQs, films, ‘top tips’ and legal advice sheets;
• Online forums where families can receive advice, discuss issues, and find support;
• A webchat service where you can message an adviser online, who will help you find information and advice to support you.