That is one of a catalogue of claims made by an anonymous social worker in a two-page letter which was sent on to the Jersey Evening Post. The letter cites staff shortages, the tendency of temporary workers to leave the Island rather than face responsibility for mistakes, and a corral of senior managers who, it is claimed, would rather protect their own interests than effectively manage the department.
Responding to the allegations, the States acknowledged failings in the way Jersey cared for and protected children and young people, but said work was under way to make improvements. Meanwhile, children’s charity NSPCC told the JEP all workers should feel able to speak out without fear of reprisals.
The whistleblower said: ‘It’s a scam, a cover-up, corruption and wickedness. Evil is happening to the social services. I am afraid this working environment is not right. People are only thinking of themselves. There is no comradeship and no one is looking after your back. The staff have signed the official secret act and they would be dismissed if they blew the trumpet.’
The letter appears to be a draft that was never actually sent to its intended recipient, but was instead posted to this reporter with a covering note saying: ‘You can see I have kept the attached for a while. I guess I can blame myself for not bringing the wrongdoing to light.
‘The powers that be have such a grip of the Children’s Services. In my lowly position I could not bring the top people to any justice. I am so sorry at this stage I cannot introduce myself. I have enjoyed your columns and it is a bit special to have someone stick his neck out with his reporting.’
A key issue, repeated throughout the letter, is the range of problems caused by having so many temporary workers. Staff shortages have been acknowledged by the States as a priority to be tackled, though they point out a wider shortage of social workers in the UK and the time it takes to train new personnel, as reasons for there being no quick fix.
The author of the letter claims the generous rates of pay mean some temps can earn up to £1,500 a week, removing any incentive to apply for a staff job where they may earn less. They go on to say some are attracted by a temp job in Jersey for the summer months, but then return home in the winter. The letter adds: ‘When the **** hits the fan they will be on the next flight home with no responsibility or repercussions blamed on them.’
The case of a child who has suffered physical abuse is raised by the whistleblower, who claims social workers were called in for an urgent meeting with the police to explain why the right procedures were not being followed. It also claimed a manager from Children’s Services pointed out training on the policy had never taken place, as although it had been scheduled it was subsequently cancelled.
Elsewhere, among a litany of allegations, claims of internal feuds between managers, with one regularly blaming others for their own mistakes rather than taking responsibility, and an attitude among those in charge that can be characterised as: ‘We must not rock the boat, just keep lying. If it came out that we could not handle the scandal, we would have to leave the Island.’
The letter continues: ‘People working at Le Bas Centre are having to work in a culture of fear and keep quiet or leave. For them it is impossible to find another job in Jersey with their expertise. A few are hanging in there hoping for a miracle to happen, for the truth to come to light.’
The revelations obtained by the JEP have alarmed child welfare professionals.
Jacky Moon, NSPCC Jersey Service Centre Manager, said: ‘It is important that all employees have the ability to speak out and report their concerns without fear of repercussion.’
‘The safety and wellbeing of children must always be the first priority and the NSPCC’s Whistleblowing Advice Line offers support to all professionals from any organisation who are concerned that a child may be at risk. Serious allegations around child protection should always be thoroughly investigated.’
The charity’s advice line is available on 0800 028 0285.
In a statement responding to a summary of the allegations made by the whistleblower, a States of Jersey spokesperson said: ‘We cannot comment on whistleblower allegations that we have not seen, but we accept that there are failings in how Jersey cares for and protects children and young people and that we need to make swift improvements. We approved a new Improvement Plan for Children’s Services [last week], setting out the known issues that we need to tackle in order to address these failings.
‘The Improvement Plan follows early feedback from an Ofsted review, which said while there was no evidence to suggest that, from the casework examined, any children were at risk of immediate harm, progress in improvement had been too slow and that Children’s Services and the wider public service are still failing children. We will respond to the outcome of this inspection once the Jersey Care Commission publishes its report in September.’
The States also acknowledged the need to tackle issues of recruitment and retention of staff, and the need to improve the management, supervision, training and development of workers.
The statement continued: ‘We are committed to providing a safe, supportive and respectful work environment, where all employees feel valued. The recent report into bullying and harassment shows that we have fallen short and need to make improvements. We are working to implement the recommendations from this report and some work has already been completed. We are establishing a new whistleblowing policy and independent hotline, and are developing a new training programme and 14-day resolution process.’
*The letter writer can contact gburgess@jerseyeveningpost.com in confidence if they wish to share further information, as can any whistleblower from any company, department or service wishing to expose wrongdoing.
