Children in Danger; Underfunded Care Homes Are Dumping Grounds

Summary

---

Fostering at its best lives up to the original meaning of the word, from the Old English fostrian, to feed and nourish. This week, the BBC series, Taking Care, has been highlighting the best of fostering, where vulnerable children are brought up by proper families which nourish in the round. As part of the series, Kerry McFadden, of I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here! fame, Neil Morrissey, the actor, and Bruce Oldfield, the designer, talk about their positive experiences of fostering.

For every success story, however, there are many examples of children who could benefit from that caring environment but who are denied it because of a shortage of foster parents (Scotland needs at least another 650). Although fostering is not right for all children, there is a major problem when the alternative - residential child care - can put youngsters at even greater risk. An investigation by The Herald, published today, reveals that young children in care are being physically and sexually abused by offending teenagers under the same roof. There are reports of three- year-olds being placed beside troubled adolescents and children with mental health problems put at risk of abuse. They are preyed upon by others who might have been abused themselves before being taken into care.

See the full content of this document

Extract

---

Children in Danger; Underfunded Care Homes Are Dumping Grounds

George Anderson, a senior figure in the children's panel network, describes the situation as un...

See the full content of this document

---