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The Welsh Assembly government have sidestepped requests from the Celtic League that they should conduct a retrospective child care audit - see below:
"Welsh Assembly Government
Ref: AT/00244/09
5th February
Dear Mr Tal-e-bot
Thanks you for your letter of 13 January addressed to the Minister for Health and Social Services to which I have been asked to respond.
The Welsh Assembly Government currently has no plans to undertake an audit of the kind you propose. However, looked after children remain and care leavers remain a key priortiy for us. Since the publication of the Waterhouse report we have introduced a range of initiatives which aim to ensure that the abuse that went on in children's homes in North Wales in the past is not allowed to happen again in the future.
You referred to the appointment of the Children's Commissioner, which was established by the Welsh Assembly Government as the first appointment of its kind in the UK to act as a champion for children's rights in Wales.
The Welsh Assembly Government's Children First programme was a direct response to "Lost in Care". Over 250 million was invested in the programme over its lifetime to transform services for looked after children including their health, education and protection from harm. The programme was a catalyst for improving outcomes for children in care.
One of the areas highlighted in "Lost in Care" was the lack of any kind of mechanism for looked after children to raise their concerns and have these concerns listened to. Access to effective advocacy services have been identified as a way of ensuring that children's voices are heard. From April 2010, the Welsh Assembly Government will introduce a new framework for delivering advocacy services for all children and young people, including children looked after. This will ensure that any concerns that they have in relation to health, education or social services can be addressed.
Through "Towards a Stable Life and Brighter Future" we introduced a range of provisions to strengthen arrangements for the placement, health, education and wellbeing of looked after children. This introduced strengthening the statutory framework to raise the quality of the children's home workforce. From july 1st 2007, managers and staff of children's homes must obtain relevant qualifications and register with the Care Council for Wales by a prescribed date.
Through the Children's Act 2004, local authorities and their partners share a statutory duty to safeguard and promote the wellbeing of looked after children and are required to establish Local Children Safeguarding Boards to ensure statutory bodies cooperate to safeguard children in their area. They are also required to appoint Lead Members and Lead Directors for Children and Young Peoples Services. We will shortly be issuing revised guidance for elected members on their role as corporate parents for the children they are responsible for looking after.
Later this year we will consult on a strategy for vulnerable children with a focus on children in care, on the edge of care and care leavers, using powers in the Children and Young Person's Act 2008. The Act is designed to reform the statutory framework for the care system, to ensure that children and young people receive high quality care and support and to drive improvements in the delivery of services focussed on the needs of the child.
Your letter queries how referrals of adults who may have been abused in the past are dealt with and whether they have any sort of mentoring. I have attached a list of support groups which may be of interest to you. The Welsh Assembly Government also funds an organisation called "Voices from Care" which helps people who are or have been looked after in the past by local authorities in Wales. I believe that "Voices from Care" does seek to offer advice and support to adults who have experienced abuse while they were looked after. "Voices from Care" is based at 39, The Parade, Roath, Cardiff CF24 3AD.
Yours sincerely
Patrick Harper Children First Branch"
See related article on Celtic News at:
J B Moffatt Director of Information Celtic League 20/02/09
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