Northumberland children’s home abuse
Northumberland County Council has recently issued an apology for its failure to investigate claims of mistreatment in one of its children’s homes.
The Council issued the apology following a finding of the Local Government & Social Care Ombudsman that it had failed to investigate complaints made by a man about children’s home abuse.
This man, known as Mr X in the report, had been in a number of children’s homes as well as a foster placement as a child. He reported the abuse and neglect he suffered, but the Council failed to properly investigate.
The Council ultimately accepted that it had failed to safeguard Mr X and has apologised, acknowledging that it “caused Mr X avoidable distress “.
Where a child has been taken into the care of a local authority, the authority will be responsible for their wellbeing and, if the child suffers abuse while in their care, there may well be a claim for child abuse compensation that can be brought.
Local authorities are responsible for the actions of their employees in children’s homes, as well as the conduct of foster parents. This means that if someone suffers children’s home abuse or is abused while in foster care, they could have a claim against the council.
Our specialist abuse team has successfully dealt with many such claims, including a claim for a lady now in her 30s who was raped by her foster father when she was a teenager.
Elizabeth Duncan, whose work in this area has been recognised by the Law Society and the Legal 500, says:
“When a child has to be cared for by the local authority, it means that they have already been through a huge amount in their young lives and are very vulnerable. If they are then betrayed by being abused or neglected by those who should be caring for them, it can have a catastrophic effect on their wellbeing. While money cannot undo what has happened, it can help someone access specialist treatment as well as representing an acknowledgment of what they have suffered.”
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