Complaint 2 - concerns over safeguarding unanswered and shut down with a blatant lie to an MP
Jesse Norman MP asked Paul Walker, CEO of Herefordshire Council, to provide answers to unanswered safeguarding concerns raised in a formal complaint first submitted in August 2024 . What eventually came back to Jesse Norman in writing, reproduced below, was a blatant lie. The date of this blatant lie from Herefordshire Council: 3 February 2025.
In the run up to the blatant lie, the process and deadlines for dealing with complaints had been completely ignored by the current complaints manager, Tilly Page. Then in the first formal response to the complaint, which came from the Head of Corporate Parenting, Tori Lynch, four out of five of the alleged omissions were completely ignored . The complainant wrote back and asked Tori Lynch to address the remaining four alleged omissions. Again, there was silence. The complainant then asked her MP to intervene and press for an answer. That was when Paul Walker was asked for a response and weeks later the blatant lie was produced.
The concerns raised in the complaint about serious breaches of the Fostering Services: National Minimum Standards are as yet unanswered one year later.
1.
From: [complainant]
Sent: 29 August 2024 10:56
To: 'Page, Tilly' <Tilly.Page@herefordshire.gov.uk>
Subject: New complaint
Dear Tilly
Please see attached.
[complainant]
The Attachment: original complaint against Lorraine Bishop, senior social worker and service manager for the Corporate Parenting Service, Herefordshire Council
This … question… [was put] to CYPS for the meeting on 7 May 2024.
If a member of the public has safeguarding concerns over a foster carer or a kinship carer, is the fostering panel made aware of those concerns?
This was the response:
The Fostering Panel promotes safe, secure and stable placements. It carries out a rigorous quality assurance function and promotes thorough assessments, support and training for foster carers.
As part of this function, the panel oversees the conduct of assessments and annual reviews of approved foster carers. Any allegations about safeguarding concerns in respect of a foster carer, including a kinship carer (also known as ‘Connected’ or ‘Family and Friends Carers), raised by anyone, including a member of the public, will be responded to in accordance with established multi-agency Child Protection Procedures to ensure the safety and wellbeing of children. The Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) will also work with multi-agency partners and employers, to manage allegations about people who work with children in paid or unpaid positions, including foster carers. Allegations made about foster carers will necessitate an early fostering review and the matter being referred to the Fostering Panel to consider the continuing suitability to foster.
The supervising social worker for the foster carer and/or the children’s allocated social worker will inform the Fostering Panel about safeguarding issues regarding the foster carer for the Fostering Panel to consider during the foster carer’s annual review. The Fostering Panel can subsequently make a recommendation to the Agency Decision Maker which could include the recommendation to terminate the foster carer’s approval.
Lorraine Bishop was the supervising social worker for a family where …children have been placed with [ ] who has previously been charged with 15 counts of child sexual abuse including the rape of a minor living in their care.
Lorraine Bishop was fully aware of the scale and gravity of the offences for which [ ] was charged. She had a professional duty to ensure that the Foster Panel was fully aware of the concerns raised repeatedly since July 2023 by the parents, members of CYPS, members of the public, and both Herefordshire MPs. She did not do this.
On 30th July 2024, in a meeting at Plough Lane, Cllr Robert Highfield, a member of the Foster Panel, confirmed that the Foster Panel had not been made aware that an approved foster carer, [ ], had previously been charged with 15 counts of child sexual abuse including rape of a minor living in his care. Nor had the Foster Panel been made aware of the huge public concern over this case. Nor had the Foster Panel been made aware of the MASH referral about this case made by the Police in July 2023. Nor had the Foster Panel been made aware of the referral by the police of the three children living in this man’s care to their Protecting Vulnerable Persons’ (PVP) Unit in January 2024. Nor had the Foster Panel been made aware that after a police review of [ ]’s file, the Superintendent of Herefordshire police, Helen Wain and the Detective Superintendent of West Mercia’s PVP unit personally met with Council leaders to lay out their concerns.
2.
From: [complainant]
Sent: 30 October 2024 07:59
To: 'Page, Tilly' <Tilly.Page@herefordshire.gov.uk>
Cc: [mother]
Subject: FW: New complaint
Dear Tilly
It’s over 2 months since I submitted the complaint against Lorraine Bishop, and I have no idea what has become of it. Please could you update me and [the mother]?
Thank you
[complainant]
From: [complainant]
Sent: 30 October 2024 08:03
To: Complaints (Herefordshire Council) <complaints@herefordshire.gov.uk>
Cc: [mother]
Subject: FW: New complaint
I have just received an out of office reply from Tilly which states she is out of the office until 12 November and to contact you in her absence.
Since the matters raised in the complaint are quite serious, please could you update me and [mother], who gave consent in relation to the complaint, about what has happened to the complaint.
With thanks
[complainant]
3.
From: Complaints (Herefordshire Council) <complaints@herefordshire.gov.uk>
Sent: 08 November 2024 09:05
To: [complainant]; [mother]
Cc: xxx
Subject: RE: New complaint
Good morning both,
Thank you for your email below.
Please find attached the response from Tori Lynch, as this was an anonymous complaint you will see it has been addressed accordingly.
Kind regards,
Jasmine
Jasmine Chowns
Complaints Officer
Attachment
Dear Anonymous
My name is Tori Lynch and I am Head of Service for Corporate parenting. I am writing to you in response to the concerns you have raised in your complaint.
In order to fully investigate your complaint I have reviewed case file and spoken with colleagues from the fostering service. Lorraine Bishop has now left the authority so I have been unable to speak with her, however, I am satisfied that I can give clarity to the points you raise from my investigations.
Lorraine Bishop was a Service Manager for the Corporate Parenting Service and not a Supervising Social Worker. As such she was not working directly with […] . Lorraine Bishop did not have direct line management responsibility for the Social Worker of the children alluded to in this complaint who are placed with [ ] . Having said this she was fully aware of the children’s circumstances and any issues raised by the children’s parents.
Having read the …carer’s original assessment I can see that this was explored within the document. The Fostering Panel were made aware of the historic allegations of sexual abuse during the Kinship Carers first presentation to Panel on 29.9.21. The Panel were provided with information held on the Disclosure and Barring Service enhanced check, as well as within the Form C assessment itself. The Fostering Panel were made aware of the historical allegations through the assessment process and did consider this information when making their recommendation of approval. The Agency Decision Maker was provided with all of the information considered by the Fostering Panel and approved the Kinship carers on 8.10.21.
Further information about the allegations made, and the outcome of criminal proceedings that resulted in [ ] being found not guilty of child sexual abuse, was considered by the Fostering Independent Reviewing Officer (FIRO) as part of the Kinship carers first Annual Review on 16.8.22. This First Review was presented to the Fostering Panel on 14.9.22. The Fostering Panel members received all of the information considered by the FIRO. During this presentation, the Fostering Panel were given further information around the allegation made against the Kinship carer and as such were fully informed and aware of the issues. The Fostering Panel made a positive recommendation of re-approval of the carers, which the Agency Decision Maker agreed with and re-approved the carers on 7.10.22.
Please be reassured that I have listened to your concerns and I trust the above now clarifies the matter.
Yours sincerely
Tori Lynch
Head of Corporate parenting
4.
From: [complainant]
Sent: 08 November 2024 11:29
To: 'Complaints (Herefordshire Council)' <complaints@herefordshire.gov.uk>
Cc: xxx; MACLEOD, Susie <susie.macleod@parliament.uk>
Subject: RE: New complaint
Dear Jasmine
Thank you for sending the complaint response from Tori.
Tori has undertaken only a partial investigation and has not addressed four out of the five alleged omissions in my original complaint. I would be grateful if you forward the attached letter to her and ask for an urgent response since the complaint was lodged over 10 weeks ago and relates to alleged omissions in connection with the safeguarding of children.
[Mother] is copied in here and has already provided consent that this complaint can be investigated.
With thanks
[complainant}
Attachment
Letter from Complainant to Tori Lynch, 8th November 2024
Dear Tori
I have today received by email your letter which is Herefordshire Council’s response to my formal complaint sent to Tilly Page on 29 August 2024 about the failure of the supervising social worker in the [ …] case to provide all the necessary information to the Foster Panel in order for the Foster Panel to properly assess the safety of the […] placement for […].
The dates and confirmations you provide are very helpful. Thank you for this. However, the information you provide relates to only one of the 5 alleged omissions in my complaint and therefore your investigation is not complete.
Here is the paragraph from the original complaint which sets out the five alleged omissions:
On 30th July 2024, in a meeting at Plough Lane, Cllr Robert Highfield, a member of the Foster Panel, confirmed that the Foster Panel had not been made aware that an approved foster carer, XXX, had previously been charged with 15 counts of child sexual abuse including rape of a minor living in his care. Nor had the Foster Panel been made aware of the huge public concern over this case. Nor had the Foster Panel been made aware of the MASH referral about this case made by the Police in July 2023. Nor had the Foster Panel been made aware of the referral by the police of the three children living in this man’s care to their Protecting Vulnerable Persons’ (PVP) Unit in January 2024. Nor had the Foster Panel been made aware that after a police review of XXXX file, the Superintendent of Herefordshire police, Helen Wain and the Detective Superintendent of West Mercia’s PVP unit personally met with Council leaders to lay out their concerns.
This paragraph can be broken down as follows:
Alleged omission 1
On 30th July 2024, in a meeting at Plough Lane, Cllr Robert Highfield, a member of the Foster Panel, confirmed that the Foster Panel had not been made aware that an approved foster carer, XXXXX, had previously been charged with 15 counts of child sexual abuse including rape of a minor living in his care.
You have dealt with this matter. Thank you.
Alleged Omissions 2 – 5
Nor had the Foster Panel been made aware of the huge public concern over this case.
Nor had the Foster Panel been made aware of the MASH referral about this case made by the Police in July 2023.
Nor had the Foster Panel been made aware of the referral by the police of the three children living in this man’s care to their Protecting Vulnerable Persons’ (PVP) Unit in January 2024.
Nor had the Foster Panel been made aware that after a police review of Andrew Jennings’ file, the Superintendent of Herefordshire police, Helen Wain and the Detective Superintendent of West Mercia’s PVP unit personally met with Council leaders to lay out their concerns.
Your written response does not address alleged omissions 2-5 at all. You have only provided information about what happened up to 7 October 2022 which pre-dated the alarm being raised by the public on 5 July 2023, and all that has followed, including the two safeguarding referrals by the police (one to MASH and one to their PVP unit).
As a matter of urgency, please can you now address alleged omissions 2-5 from my original complaint. Please confirm the date on which the Foster Panel was told that
(i) The police had made an urgent safeguarding MASH referral in July 2023 as soon as they heard that the Kinship Carer had unsupervised access to children in his home
(ii) When the children remained in the care of this man with no adequate safety plan in place, the police referred the three children to the Protecting Vulnerable Persons Unit in January 2024
(iii) The police had undertaken a review of the case and on completion of the review the Superintendent of Herefordshire and another senior officer from West Mercia’s PVP unit called a meeting with senior leaders of the Council to discuss the police assessment of the case
Please also confirm who was the supervising social worker in this case
(i) at the time of the police MASH referral and
(ii) on the date of the meeting between the Superintendent and senior Council officers.
As this complaint was lodged over 10 weeks ago and relates to serious safeguarding concerns about three children raised in turn by the parents, the public, members of CYPS and both Herefordshire MPs, I would ask that you provide an urgent response.
With thanks
[complainant]
5.
From: Page, Tilly <Tilly.Page@herefordshire.gov.uk>
Date: Wed, 13 Nov 2024, 11:30
Subject: RE: New complaint
To: [complainant]
Cc[mother]>, Complaints (Herefordshire Council) <complaints@herefordshire.gov.uk>
Good morning [complainant]
[mother] has been updated regarding this complaint.
Kind regards,
Tilly Page Corporate Services
Complaints and Children’s Rights Manager Plough Lane
01432 383 708 Hereford
07792 880 232 HR4 0LE
6.
From: [complainant]
Sent: 11 December 2024 17:13
To: MACLEOD, Susie <susie.macleod@parliament.uk (Senior Caseworker for The Rt Hon Jesse Norman )
Subject: RE: New complaint
Hi Susie
I’ve had no response to the email below to the Complaints Team [message sent 8 November to Jasmine Chowns see above setting out the omissions in the answer to the complaint]. It’s in reference to a complaint first lodged on 29 August and asks, inter alia, when the Foster Panel was informed of the police MASH referral re xxx (July 2023) and the police referral of the children to the PVP unit (Jan 24). I think no answer screams the Panel have not been told, which ties in with what Councillor Highfield has told me, but it would be helpful to have this confirmed in writing.
If I chase a response, they’ll label me vexatious or unreasonable or something else. Would you feel comfortable chasing it for me as you were copied in to my message below to Jasmine?
Thanks Susie
[complainant]
From: jnorman2@parliament.uk
Sent: 13 December 2024 09:10
To: [complainant]
Subject: Re: New complaint (Case Ref: JN35903)
Dear [complainant}
Thank you for your email and I have asked Paul Walker to ensure that you receive a response to the points which you feel have not been addressed by the earlier reply from Tori Lynch.
Have a lovely weekend.
Kind regards
Susie
Susie Macleod | Senior Caseworker for The Rt Hon Jesse Norman
Member of Parliament for Hereford & South Herefordshire
7.
From: Jesse Norman <jnorman2@parliament.uk>
Sent: 03 February 2025 11:48
To: [complainant]
Subject: FW: New complaint (Case Ref: JN35903)
Dear [complainant]
Further to earlier correspondence, Herefordshire Council have now provided the following response (which has been brought to Jesse’s attention) in relation to your letter to Tori Lynch dated 8th November:
“With apologies for the delay in responding to the enquiry from 13 December, I am told by the complaints team that a response was sent to the parent on 8 November 2024. Tilly Page contacted xxx on 13 November 2024 to explain that the response had been sent and that we would be communicating with the parent moving forward. This complaint involved a family and did not involve xxx. The parent did not wish to proceed with the complaint at the time and did not request further assistance so this complaint was closed accordingly.”
Kind regards
Susie
Susie Macleod | Senior Caseworker for The Rt Hon Jesse Norman
Member of Parliament for Hereford & South Herefordshire
8.
On Mon, 3 Feb 2025, 12:06, complainant wrote:
Hi Susie
Thanks for sharing this. Once again, this is a blatant misrepresentation of the facts and an attempt to avoid answering a question which has an incriminating answer.
The Council partially answered my August 2024 complaint, but they just ignored the part of my complaint about the Foster Panel not being told about the police safeguarding referrals. It’s obvious why they have avoided answering it - Cllr Robert Highfield has already confirmed that the Foster Panel were not informed.
It is a blatant lie to say that [the family] does not support this complaint. The Council have used this as an excuse before and it was as untrue then as it is now.
[Mother], please confirm to Susie that you have not informed the Council – as claimed below- that you “did not wish to proceed with the complaint” about the failure of the Council to inform the Foster Panel about the two police referrals.
Susie, once you have confirmation from XXX, it is possible for Jesse to go back and raise concerns about yet another example of the Council’s dishonest dodging of accountability on a child safeguarding issue, and the fact that the Foster Panel have been kept in the dark about the concerns raised by the police. The police clearly do not think the placement is safe, so why are the kids still there? If the Council has a reason for believing the placement is safe, why can they not explain it to [the family] or to Jesse?
Thanks Susie
[complainant]
9.
From: [the mother]
Sent: 03 February 2025 12:44
To: [the complainant]
Cc: Jesse Norman <jnorman2@parliament.uk>
Subject: Re: New complaint (Case Ref: JN35903)
Hi All,
The only complaint I have refused was in regards to Gail Hancock as it had been escalated to Social Work England.
I've looked through my emails and I see an email from Tilly Page to [the complainant], which I'm copied into and it simply states I've been updated. The email is dated 13/11/2024.
Looking at the email chain, I can see the complaint was about Lorraine Bishop and it was made in August. If I had refused to give consent, why would they be sending emails to state I've been updated, 3 months after the complaint had been made? Why would there also be a partial response if I had refused?
Let me know if you need anymore information
Kind regards
[the mother]
Conclusions
It is wholly untrue for the complaints department to claim that “the parent did not wish to proceed with the complaint”. There is no possible basis on which this can be claimed by officers. It is a lie manufactured to avoid answering questions which about alleged breaches by Herefordshire Council of Government guidelines on fostering standards, which have resulted in the Foster Panel not being made aware of the fact that West Mercia Police assess the placement to pose a serious risk of sexual harm.
This complaint is being published in full so that the Foster Panel, Councillors, MPs and others have the evidence they need to hold officers to account.
Or is a statutory public inquiry the only way to force answers to these questions?