Parents raise serious concerns over remote child protection meetings amid fears vulnerable women at risk

Three-quarters of those surveyed believed virtual meetings hurt their ability to take part

Child protection meetings take place when there are concerns a child could be at risk of serious harm from abuse or neglect  (AFP via Getty Images)

Parents have raised concerns over the effectiveness of remote child protection meetings amid fears vulnerable women could be at risk, a new report has found.

The study, carried out by Nuffield Family Justice Observatory and King’s College London, discovered three quarters of parents thought virtual meetings negatively impacted their capacity to take part.

Child protection meetings take place when there are concerns a child could be at risk of serious harm from abuse or neglect and are often the last step before the legal process begins for a child to be placed in care away from their parents.

Researchers found the overwhelming bulk of previously in-person child protection meetings are taking place via video or telephone in the wake of the coronavirus crisis, with professionals envisaging the shift to remote meetings to continue even when the public health crisis ends.

The study, which polled more than 500 professionals and parents, found professionals had concerns new remote meetings -which are often attended by social workers, police, teachers, GPs or other health professionals - could be unsafe for vulnerable parents.

Fears were raised that domestic abuse victims could be in the same room as a violent partner who could pose a danger due to what they heard during the meeting. While children at home could also overhear troubling information they should not be exposed to.

Just under half of parents said they had been denied a chance to voice their opinion or not been able to remark on what was going on during the discussion.

Lucy*, who is currently caring for her son’s baby, raised grave concerns about remote meetings as she warned her son’s former girlfriend was not treated fairly during the discussion.

The 42-year-old told The Independent: “I’m in contact with the dad, who is my son, and the mum of the baby. The baby is in my care because they have mental health problems.

“I wasn't happy with the fact they weren’t able to express themselves during the remote meeting. The outcome affects the life of the baby forever. The mum agreed to me having the baby for the rest of my life.

“Her reception was dropping in and out and she was not properly engaging with the meeting. We don’t know for sure who was in the room with her. She doesn’t realise this decision is permanent. She should be given another chance to know how big the situation is. She should have had a support worker with her. The mum wasn’t fairly treated because she was not supported in person.”

Lucy said the decision could cause a great deal of damage to both parents in the future as they may feel like it was forced on them and the verdict was not reached with due process.

“In future, it could be upsetting for all of them,” she added. “The baby might say you gave me up easily. It will compromise how we tell him his story. I don’t think it will sit right. It won’t look right because the mother wasn’t represented properly."

Lucy said the mother had agreed to do parenting courses, suggesting she wrongly believed she might have her baby back one day and did not therefore understand the permanence of the decision.

Lucy said she was holding back from applying for permanent guardianship due to not believing the remote meeting to be fair.

Lisa Harker, director of the Nuffield Family Justice Observatory, said parents report struggling to know who is in the room during calls, with some joining video meetings via audio call due to not having the right technology.

She said: “Professionals may be on a video call which parents join by phone due to not having access to a laptop or having enough data to be able to take part. There are concerns parents are at a disadvantage by not being able to see.

“Parents reported it feeling quite intimidating to speak up in that environment due to not seeing who was talking. A lot of parents hadn’t received paperwork in advance.

“There are also questions about safety. It is difficult for professionals to know who is at home. If there is domestic abuse, they may not be able to be open and honest. Also, children might overhear what they are talking about.”

Ms Harker, whose organisation looks at the experiences of children in the family justice system, cited an example of a mother suffering from a migraine and vomiting into a bowl during a child protection meeting while her partner sat elsewhere not engaging with the process “glaring at the screen”.

She said she hoped the research would make professionals reflect on what will happen with such meetings when social distancing rules are no longer in place.

“It is very difficult to imagine how you can support someone emotionally through a stressful and difficult process without seeing them face to face,” she added. 

Despite concerns raised, nearly half of professionals thought remote meetings were favourable to being in the same room - citing the benefit of having increased attendance by a range of professionals.

Adrienne Barnett, a senior lecturer in law who specialises in domestic abuse and the family courts, raised concerns remote meetings could put already vulnerable women at further risk.

“There is such a high proportion of vulnerable women with mental health difficulties and learning difficulties who will be in these highly important, potentially forever life-changing remote meetings,” she said.

Dr Barnett, who specialised in family law while practising as a barrister for more than 30 years, said communication mix-ups via remote meetings might mean parents agree to take steps to address concerns but not actually understand what they are agreeing to. 

This type of misunderstanding can lead to children being taken into care due to parents unintentionally not following steps they have agreed to take, she said.

*Name has been changed to protect her identity