Yet the Government has so far failed to say what financial help will

Yet the Government has so far failed to say what financial help will be available. We owe nothing less than this to some of our most vulnerable citizens.The writer chaired the Staffordshire “pin-down” inquiry in 1990-91.. As yesterday’s London Marathon wound its way down the newly reopened Marshwall road, runners and onlookers had a chance to see the effects of the Docklands blast 10 weeks ago They must have been impressed by progress The authorities have worked hard to make offices safe. But what about the 550 families whose homes were devastated? From the route, which looped past the Barkantine estate, everything seemed fine, apart from a banner, draped from one tower block, proclaiming “Help the Barkantine” In reality, many victims still lack the support they need. Families that lost homes and possessions and sought grants have been turned down by the Department of Social Security. Those still living in Lantern House, the most badly damaged block, have yet to learn whether the Government will provide any new money.
British Telecom has been unsympathetic. I wrote to Sir Iain Vallance, BT’s chairman, about the company’s decision to impose reconnection fees after the blast.

His office replied: “His heart goes out to the local community”. But it declined to waive the charges.Tower Hamlets council has done its best. Staff collected three tons of broken glass and replaced more than a thousand windows and doors. Our teachers got the local primary and nursery school reopened three days after the school hall had been blown apart.All this will probably cost about pounds 1m. A company set up recently offering skilled vetting procedures has gone out of business because its services were not taken up. If abuse does occur, there must be proper complaints procedures and effective action.Residential care is recognised as an important resource for our society. But it must now be properly resourced, if it is to provide a safe haven for children.

Other countries have either a minister for children, for example Ireland, or a children’s rights commissioner, as in New Zealand and Sweden.Only, for instance, if effective recruitment methods are in place will abusers be deterred from insinuating themselves into homes. Improved training, better systems of supervision and inspection and the registration of homes are other vital matters.Overall, children merit a specific individual who will work for change and for their protection. The findings and recommendations of numerous inquiries have gone largely unheeded.The ethos of deregulation and the placing of responsibility locally will not do. The running down of the social services inspectorate, which has a vital role to play, is unacceptable.

Recommendations repeatedly made over the years for an effective register of individuals convicted of relevant offences must actually be heeded.A general social services council is obviously necessary in order to set and monitor standards for care workers. The Government in particular must provide a practical lead in dealing with a national problem requiring oversight, co-ordination and action. Private children’s homes have also come under the spotlight, and last year one social services director complained about the Government’s policy of deregulation, which allows private homes to operate with a minimum of outside supervision.One of the children who suffered under the pin-down regime said that she was not frightened when she ran away from a particular residential home in Staffordshire because wherever she went could only be better than where she had come from. It would be foolhardy to think that abuse is not happening now in children’s homes and that it will not occur in the future.It is clear that there is a failure of leadership, both on a national and a local level. Further scandals have surfaced in Northumberland, Islington, Cheshire and particularly North Wales. This amounts to a dereliction of duty to children in public care. The report noted that “it would not be wise for anyone to approach this report on the basis that it all happened a long time ago and that nothing like it could ever happen again”.

The Leicester inquiry led to the Warner committee considering in particular selection and recruitment methods and criteria for staff working in children’s homes.The Warner report expressed concern that “there have been so many inquiries whose findings seem to have gone largely unheeded by the service as a whole”. That report noted that there were far too many examples of poor management and that it was essential that management, staffing levels, training and support for staff were improved. The physical condition of many homes needed urgent attention and the status of children’s homes and their staff had to be raised. In response, the Government set up the Support Force for Children’s Residential Care, which was to last two years and offer advice to individual authorities on the relevant issues.Yet despite all the expert attention these scandals have received, we appear to be no nearer to providing an effective solution to the problem. After the Utting report, the then minister for health, Virginia Bottomley, said that the Government accepted the thrust of all the recommendations and “would be taking action forward urgently to make the best use of available resources”.The Leicestershire inquiry, which covered sexual abuse of children by Frank Beck between 1973 and 1986, went over by now familiar ground, including failures regarding recruitment of staff, complaints and investigation procedures. The topics of supervision and training, support of staff under stress and better career opportunities were again considered.Further abuse that came to light in 1992 and 1993 in Wales (Ty Mawr), Sheffield and Leicestershire deepened the concern about children in residential care and reinforced the urgent need for the recommendations already made to be implemented. He concluded in August 1991 that it was an “an indispensable service”, and that the homes needed to be managed, inspected and monitored carefully and staffed with professionally qualified personnel.