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Peter Black and South Wales West Liberal DemocratsRepresenting Aberavon, Bridgend, Gower, Neath, Ogmore, Port Talbot, and Swansea |
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Assembly member attacks Health Minister over ill-judged and inaccurate criticisms of Swansea Council
November 26, 2009 12:00 AM
Welsh Liberal Democrat Assembly Member for South Wales West, Peter Black, has attacked the Health Minister over an ill-judged and inaccurate press release that makes untrue allegations about Swansea Council and compromises her future dealings with that City's social services department.
Mr. Black was referring to a press release put out in Edwina Hart's name on Wednesday 25th November in which she expresses her 'serious concern' about proposals to consult on the closure of two children's homes in Swansea. She alleges that both facilities have been largely unused for some months and this has resulted in children being placed out of county. She says that this practice is discouraged in WAG guidelines, which is a misunderstanding of Safer Lives Brighter Futures.
Mrs. Hart also alleges that, on occasions, children who have had to be removed from their homes in an emergency have been forced to spend the night with a social worker in a motorway café because there has been no emergency accommodation. This is an allegation that has been categorically denied by the Council.
Commenting on the statement, Mr. Black said: "This is an extraordinary lapse of judgement on the part of the health minister, who has the ultimate responsibility for oversight of social services in the cabinet. Not only has she misunderstood her own guidelines but she is contradicting the judgement of her own inspectorate and undermining the view of the intervention board she put into the City that the issue of these children's homes should be dealt with swiftly.
"Both the Social Care Inspectorate and National Children's Homes have said that these two homes are not fit for purpose. The Welsh Government's intervention board has urged the council to do something about this and as a result officers are redesigning the service, publishing a 90 day consultation notice on closure and putting in place alternative provision.
"At present these homes are under-utilised whilst a brand new facility that meets all of the inspectorate's requirements has just been opened. What is worse though is that the health minister has called into question the professional integrity of individual social workers, who she alleges have acted illegally in their placement of children, she misunderstands the way that social services departments place vulnerable children so that they are treated according to their needs rather than put into unfit homes and she has referred to guidance from her own department that does not exist.
"Although this is a personal statement from her as a local AM, I consider that her actions have undermined future dealings between herself, as a Minister and Swansea Council and calls into question whether she can act impartially in judging the efficacy of the Councils' children's services department."
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