a new monthly column from members
of SIRCC
This
month’s column is from
Graham
McPheat
Lecturer,
Glasgow School of Social Work,
Strathclyde University
Put
Vulnerable Young People
Back on the Agenda
The
annual report of the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration
(SCRA) was published a few weeks ago. It has prompted many expressions
of concern as to the figures contained within it.
The
report revealed that the number of children and young people referred
to the Children’s Reporter rose to 45,793 in 2003-4, an
increase of 12.6 per cent on the previous year. Of these referrals,
16,740 were for children who had committed offences whilst the
other 33,379 related to concern for young people’s care
and protection in their family environment.
For
those poor souls not fortunate enough to live in Scotland a brief
explanation of the Children’s Reporter and their role is
perhaps necessary if much of the above or what is to follow is
to make sense.
The
Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968 established the Scottish children’s
hearing system, based largely on recommendations made the Kilbrandon
report published in 1964. The Act established children’s
hearings, the forum where children and young people charged with
offences or assessed to be in need of care and protection were
considered.
Thereafter,
children up to 16 years of age or those under compulsory measures
of care and supervision were removed from adult criminal procedures,
except where extremely serious offences were involved. Kilbrandon
promoted an enlightened approach, advocating that the needs of
children and young people offending and those at risk were largely
similar and should be responded to in the same manner.
The
post of Children’s Reporter was created. Reporters receive
referrals of children and young people, and after any required
investigation, decide if a hearing is necessary. At any hearing
consideration is given to the need for compulsory measures of
care and supervision. Details and evidence are presented to three
trained volunteers who, with the guidance of the reporter on legal
matters, make a decision regarding the child or young person.
The SCRA was created in 1995 and now has responsibility for the
management of the hearing system.
The
role played by the hearing system in the lives of young people
in Scottish society has changed dramatically in the years since
the inception of the service. In its early years the vast majority
of referrals concerned children and young people who had committed
offences. The figures in the latest report by the SCRA illustrate
how dramatically this situation has changed.
It
is interesting to note the reactions this report has prompted,
both in the media and the Scottish Parliament. My first knowledge
of the report and its contents came via a radio news broadcast.
The headline emphasised the number of young people referred as
a consequence of committing an offence and the fact that the total
number represented a significant increase on that of the year
before. What received less attention was the fact that more than
double this amount of children had been referred as a consequence
of concerns for their welfare and safety and that this number
was also increasing.
Exchanges
concerning the report and the issues highlighted within it took
place in the Scottish Parliament during First Minister’s
Questions on the day it was published. When looking to attack
the administration on the report findings the Scottish National
Party chose to emphasise what they viewed as a failing to get
to grips with youth crime. Emphasis was placed on the rise in
the number of young offenders. Little attention appeared to be
paid to the concerns for the safety and welfare of a larger number
of children. The notion that many of these children referred on
offence grounds would also be experiencing welfare and safety
issues was all but absent.
As
someone involved in residential child care and committed to working
with children and young people in a sensitive but realistic manner,
this represents a worrying trend. Kilbrandon envisaged a system
where children involved in committing offences were treated as
children first and foremost. Any response to their offences had
to be framed within their needs as children. This remains the
task of residential and social workers involved with children
today.
However,
the scope for achieving this is being narrowed. As the media and
politicians lead an agenda that chooses to focus on youth offending
rather than children in need of care and protection, despite the
fact the latter significantly outnumber the former, the worry
is that our role could be gradually redefined.
Government rhetoric regularly places more emphasis on our role
in terms of social control rather than a creation of opportunities
and social justice. We are far more likely to hear ministers make
statements about ASBO’s or tagging as opposed to community
development and support.
Perhaps
most alarming are the possible reasons behind the increase in
numbers of children and young people referred to the reporter
on grounds of care and protection. In a response to the SCRA report
the charity Children 1st chose to highlight the worrying number
of children in vulnerable circumstances who receive no services.
As
resources dwindle many social workers find that making referrals
is often the only way of accessing services for children and their
families. Even then it is no guarantee. In a report the previous
year NCH concluded that an effectively resourced hearing system
still had a significant role to play in responding to children
in trouble but it was being used as a means to access services.
Research
clearly indicates that many children and young people who become
involved in offending have had a range of care and protection
needs from an early age. The evidence from the volume and nature
of referrals to the hearing system is that necessary preventative
services are not available. This is where more thinking and resources
have to be directed. Yes, children and young people who offend
have to be responded to appropriately. But to not address the
root cause runs the risk of losing the legacy that Kilbrandon
has left.
Email
us on sircc@childrenwebmag.com
The Scottish Institute for Residential Child Care is funded
by the Scottish Executive and employs staff in a number
of Universities and Colleges to provide training, research
and a range of advice and support services. SIRCC-employed
staff deliver the BA in Social Work and Higher National
Certificate in Social Care with a strong focus on residential
child care. Some staff are also employed to deliver a
wide range of in-service short courses. SIRCC provides
advice, consultancy and organisational development to
all agencies across Scotland, local authority and independent,
which provide children units or residential schools for
looked after children. SIRCC also runs a library and information
service. Its national office is located on the Jordanhill
Campus within the Glasgow School of Social Work. The GSSW
is a joint school of the Universities of Strathclyde and
Glasgow
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