More Social Workers and Health Visitors Need to be Employed

LONDON - That’s the Message from Lord Laming’s Review, Says Unite

The best way to implement Lord Laming’s report into child protection is
to employ more frontline professionals, such as social workers and health
visitors, Unite, the largest union in the country, said today (Thursday, 12
March).

Unite said it was ‘an immense sadness’ that nine years after the death of
eight-year old Victoria Climbie - prompting the first Laming report
containing 108 recommendations - there was still so much more room for
improvement in child protection services.

Unite, which embraces the Community Practitioners’ and Health Visitors’
Association, has been campaigning strongly for more health visitors to
provide a high quality universal service, so that early signs of child abuse
can be detected more swiftly.

At present, every 27 hours a full-time health visitor job is lost,
according to the NHS’s own workforce statistics.

Obi Amadi, Unite’s Lead Professional Officer, Policy & External Affairs
welcomed a key recommendation in the review which urged the Department of
Health to prioritise recruiting and training more health visitors to support
very young children.

Obi Amadi said: ‘Another recommendation that needs prompt action is the
production of new national guidelines setting out maximum case loads for
social workers. This figure could be used to inform the optimum number of
children for each health visitor which is also essential.’

‘I have mixed emotions - on one hand, immense sadness that Lord Laming’s
admirable services had to be called on once more, coupled with the fervent
hope that this time all involved - government, local authorities, and NHS
trusts - move quickly to implement the recommendations.’

‘One of the best ways of doing this is to recruit, properly train and
retain health visitors for the long-term. It is only by having sufficient
numbers on the frontline that the necessary improvements will be achieved.
These professionals are often engaged in very challenging work and need the
continued support.’

‘Unite and its members are willing to do everything possible to achieve
the practical vision set out today by Lord Laming.’

‘One thing the country will not tolerate is that if Lord Laming, a few
years down the line, is called on again to produce a third report. We have to
get it right this time - children’s lives depend on it.’

Source: Unite the Union

For further information, please ring: Obi Amadi, Lead Professional Officer, Policy & External Affairs +44(0)7780-955-936; Cheryll Adams, Lead Professional Officer, Strategy & Practice Development, +44(0)7712-678-281; Shaun Noble, Communications Officer (Health Sector), +44(0)20-7420-8951, +44(0)7768-693-940