Scotland’s 32 chief social work officers issue rare joint statement urging action from political leaders to tackle ‘crisis’ in care system they say has led some social workers to take children home with them because of the shortage of placements
Scotland’s care system is in a state of emergency due to an acute placement shortage that has, in some cases, led to social workers taking children home with them.
That was the stark warning from the country’s 32 chief social work officers in a rare joint statement to highlight the issue to Scottish Government and council leaders and urge action to counteract it.
The CSWOs – the strategic and professional leads for social work in each of the local authorities – said the “acute shortage of suitable homes and carers” was increasing “the risk of harm to children from physical, sexual, emotional abuse or exploitation and neglect”.
It was also “placing undue and unsustainable pressure on the people entrusted with keeping Scotland’s children, young people and adults safe”, said the statement, published by leadership body Social Work Scotland.
The CSWOs said the the shortage of placement options had led to:
- Social workers having to take children home with them in some parts of the country.
- Newborn babies remaining in the care of hospital nurses.
- Children as young as three being placed in residential care alongside young adults.
- Older children sleeping on the sofas of foster carers and residential homes.
- Children who do not have high needs being placed in expensive specialist provision making it unavailable for those who need it.
- Foster carers going many months without a break.
They described the care system as “saturated” and said it would have collapsed entirely without “the incredible efforts of Scotland’s carers, social work staff and other professionals”.
“This is an emergency for Scotland’s care system, and we ask Scottish Government and local government leaders to work with us to take necessary action.”
The CSWOs asks for:
- To have the flexibility to authorise placements which they deem suitable to protect the welfare and wellbeing of children.
- The rapid implementation of commitments already made by political leaders to “alleviate the administrative demand on social work”.
The statement referenced The Promise – the pledge that all children in Scotland would grow up loved, safe and respected by 2030 – which the Scottish Government is seeking to achieve through a raft of policies.
“We share these ambitions wholeheartedly,” said the CSWOs. “But the primary responsibility of public authorities is to protect the welfare and wellbeing of people, and if we are unable to do this fundamental task, those ambitions will never be realised.”
THE CSWOs STATEMENT IN FULL:
Across Scotland there is now an acute shortage of suitable homes and carers for children who are unable to remain in the care of their family. The lack of options increases the risk of harm to children from physical, sexual, emotional abuse or exploitation and neglect, as well as placing undue and unsustainable pressure on the people entrusted with keeping Scotland’s children, young people and adults safe.
The crisis is occurring at a time of growing concerns about the impact of poverty on families, a shortage of housing, and national attention on child sexual abuse and exploitation.
We, Scotland’s thirty-two Chief Social Work Officers, are therefore taking this unusual step of issuing a joint statement to ensure that the public and political leaders are aware of the situation, and the need for urgent action.
In the absence of placement options, newborn babies are remaining in the care of hospital nurses. Children as young as three years old are being placed in residential homes with young adults; a setting characterised by frequently changing staff and other young people.
Older children are sleeping on the sofas of foster carers and residential homes. And in such scarcity, where any safe placement will do, expensive specialist options are being used for children who do not have high levels of need, making them unavailable for those children who do.
The capacity of the care system is saturated, and it is only thanks to the incredible efforts of Scotland’s carers, social work staff and other professionals that we have been able to prevent the system collapsing entirely.
Some carers have not had a break in many months, and in some parts of the country social workers have had to take children home with them, as no other safe options are available. This is an emergency for Scotland’s care system, and we ask Scottish Government and Local Government leaders to work with us to take necessary action.
Principally, we – as the leaders of social work in local government – require the flexibility to authorise placements which we deem suitable to protect the welfare and wellbeing of children. We also need to see political commitments to alleviate the administrative demand on social work implemented at pace.
Scotland aspires to be among the best places in the world to grow up, no matter what your background or circumstances. And Scotland has made a promise to those children and families who require social work support that the experience will be positive and nurturing. We share these ambitions wholeheartedly.
But the primary responsibility of public authorities is to protect the welfare and wellbeing of people, and if we are unable to do this fundamental task, those ambitions will never be realised.
Siobhian Brown, minister for children, young people and The Promise, said she took the issues raised by the statement “very seriously” and had asked to meet with Social Work Scotland “as a priority to discuss their concerns”.
“Any child or young person who cannot live at home, regardless of their age, must be able to stay in a safe, stable and caring environment,” she added.
“We are committed to delivering The Promise, and this includes increasing the recruitment of foster carers and providing an additional £22.2 million investment in support for foster carers and kinship carers.
“We also brought new legislation in March to regulate cross-border placements in residential care – this should help ensure more places are available for local authorities in Scotland. And this year we launched the National Social Work Agency to strengthen and support the social work profession.
“However, I recognise that significant pressures remain, and we will work closely with Social Work Scotland and other partners to ensure we have the right placements across the country for children and young people.”
Scottish Association of Social Work professional officer Susan Dobson said: “The dedication of the workforce to those they support is clear, but social workers having to take children home because there is nowhere else for them to go cannot be normalised.
“This environment has potentially catastrophic consequences for those children.
“The immediate needs of children must be the priority, and we must support the profession’s leadership to provide for them in the short-term. In the long-term, there must be significant changes to resourcing and funding for services to protect and care for vulnerable children and young people.”
COSLA’s children and young people spokesperson, Tony Buchanan, said: “The issues highlighted point to real and growing risks for children and young people, for families, and for the workforce who are going above and beyond to keep people safe.
“Local government is committed to working closely with Social Work Scotland, the Scottish Government and partners to deliver both urgent action and longer term solutions… Without stabilising system capacity, there is a risk that the progress we all want to see for children and families will not be achievable.”
Joanne Smith, NSPCC Scotland policy and public affairs manager, said: “It is deeply concerning to hear from social work professionals that Scotland’s care system is in a state of emergency. The situations they describe highlight how overstretched the system has become.
“Every child who cannot live safely at home must have access to safe, consistent, nurturing and responsive care as early as possible. We have overwhelming evidence that failing to provide timely, high-quality care for children who have experienced early adversity can have devastating and lifelong consequences.
“A lack of suitable placements means that babies and children are left in unsafe, unstable, or inappropriate situations that harm their wellbeing immediately and can have lasting effects on their mental health, relationships and life chances.
“This must be a turning point. We need urgent action to increase the number of suitable foster placements, ensure better support for professionals and carers, and invest in early help so that fewer families reach crisis point in the first place.
“The Scottish Government has committed to keeping The Promise. To deliver its ambitions we must see much greater recognition that how we treat children at the start of their care journey could massively impact their life chances.
“Without immediate and sustained investment, we risk failing those children who are most vulnerable and need our protection the most.”
