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hi chaps
* Got contact order for my son, sat and sunday for now going up to friday sat sunday next month.
* The most recent issue ive been having is that every other weekend (quite regularly) my son is coming and im seeing new bruises/injuries on him.
* Most recent one being a 2 inch burn mark on the inside of his left hand,
* I have reported these to childrens services and the police not only to protect myself against false accusations (she is evil and capable of anything) but also to raise this incase things get worse so there is a log.
* On the first occasion the police came and took pics of bruises and involved social services who looked at my son but decided there wasnt a concern for child protection and just logged it. They just say the injuries are consistent with a 2 yr old falling etc and dont open their eyes to the fact that ive picked up on 6 injuries in 6 months and he cries when its time to go back to his mum , surely one can ask why does he keep getting injured, is it neglect or what?. (They only decide to listen when its usually too late or significant harm is done to child)
*The 2nd time (3 weeks later) the child protection officer came and saw my sons burn mark....After reporting it to the police, his mother text me saying he touched a hot iron which i showed the police and they seemed to believe it and said it looked consistent with touching side of iron...but didnt ask how has he managed to touch an iron when he can barely reach something on an ironing board?.
The concern i have is that they said they will keep logging these and if it comes to a stage that they think he is in danger or being neglected then even though i have a contact order...they would take my son into foster care and then i would have to go to court to get him back?,.. IS THIS LEGAL, i am his father, have parental responsibility and next of kin, social services have been to my house for section 7 report and there is no concerns. only reason he lives with mother is because she is primary carer.
* so surely logic should prevail that if the MOTHER is deemed a risk and i have him 3 days anyway..surely it would make sense both in terms of whats best for the child emotional welfare and also financial cost to put him in my full time care to protect him from his negligent mother? rather than foster care?.
* My son would cry himself to death if he went in to foster care because he has already suffered too much emotionally with not having contact with me 4 months, his whole life being turned upside down and is always crying at handover. I cant imagine the thought of him not seeing his parents and then taking him to foster care around complete strangers, so that i wouldnt see him either.
* i have to raise the concerns for his welfare to protect him from something serious hapenning but at same time im worried that now he will be taken into care and i will have to go to court to get him back
.
* Can someone tell me if this is the procedure or was the officer chatting [censored] to stop me reporting it to save them paperwork. And If it did happen how long would it take for me to get him back. Would i still see him because of my contact order.
* Surely they would consider the child to go to his father/paternal grandparents before being taken to foster care?
I honestly can't see that they would put him in foster care instead of your care, that simply isn't in the best interests of your son, not to mention the cost to the system. It might be worth having a word with the family rights group - www.frg.org.uk - they may be able to give you more information on the system and likely outcome where social services are involved.
ok , thanks
I have contacted them and they were very helpful
*They told me that from the information i have given it sounds like the police child protection officer told me that to fob me off because he maybe thinking that im over anxious or reporting it in spite of my partner.
*But obviously this isnt the case because im concerned for my childs well being and he is coming with an injury /bruise/mark every couple of weeks and now with the burn mark it appears to be getting worse in terms of severity.
*But typically thats the usual policy of the authorities that tax payers pay to have in place to protect our children, They ignore early signs and reports based on their opinions and only decide to wake up or act usually by then its too late and a child has already suffered significant harm.
They FRG advised me that under the childrens act 1989, the guidelines are that social services must consider placing a child with a family or relative as its in the childs best interests interms of emotional wellbeing (after doing safety checks) and if there isnt anyone appropriate then the next option is foster care.
Is he under a child protection order now then BM? Has there been any multi disciplinary meetings about him?
If he presents with another injury I would be tempted to say you should keep hold of him and apply for an emergency PSO and CAO to have him live with you. As his parent it is your responsibility to keep him safe.
Do you still have the contact number of the social worker that compiled the section 7?
Mojo
as far as im aware there isnt because each time they have fobbed it off as not being serious to be concerned and hes not in any danger , and assume that the injuries/burns are consistent with a young child of his age getting hurt, (i know that me and my siblings have never had 6 injuries in 6 months in a row at age of 2!)
The officer was very arrogant and made me feel that if i continue reporting it i would loose my son to foster care (now i know the law states otherwise). So the dilemma is do i keep quiet (for the same people to say at a later stage (Why didnt you report it sooner!) (because they cant be bothered right now) or risk loosing my son ,
I do have the social workers details but from my previous post, during my proceedings he was completely incompetant to the extent that he didnt even follow a court order and didnt send me the section 7 report till i had to chase various different people for it, so i wouldnt bother with him even is he was the last social worker left on earth to be honest.
I received a letter from him saying the case is closed soon after the hearing and that should any issues arise i should contact the childrens services via the usual root.
Having experienced social services it is apparent to me that their protocol is ignore all concerns as "normal behaviour" and put it down to no cause for concern until its fatal or serious by which time its too late and yet another child falls into the "we missed the signs list", Disgrace. The system needs a reform
I think you need to tread quite carefully here. Six accidents in six months isn't unusual, especially for a two year old. It's not great that he got burned on an iron but these things do happen and if that's the worst thing so far then I'm not surprised you're having no luck with Children's Services.
Is your boy saying anything that suggests he's being hurt on purpose? Crying when returning to the other parent is fairly normal, especially for his age.
Or are you thinking its that he's not supervised properly? Does he go to nursery?
my concerns are that hes isnt being supervised properly leading to the accidents,i.e neglect
He is barely tall enough to reach an ironing board and logically if i was ironing i would make sure i was extra careful if my son was around to prevent anything hapening or wait till he is having an afternoon nap and then iron.
He isnt talking full sentences yet but i can understand what he wants or is trying to say from the odd words and body language. But hes not in a position to state if hes been hurt deliberately or by whom.
He isnt at nursery yet.
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