Sharon Shoesmith

I found it quite disturbing to see the look of triumph on the face of Sharon Shoesmith outside the courts this week. I would have thought that if for nothing else she could have respected the memory of Peter Connelly.

It was a sobering sight but that said, was it really any different to the smug look on the face of Ed Balls the then Education Secretary when he effectively dismissed her on live TV.

I would suspect that there are very few people who really disagree that she should have been sacked or indeed have little sympathy for her being made out to be a scapegoat.

Baby P as he became known was placed on the child protection register when he was nine months old, in his very short and heartbreakingly tragic life he was seen by those charged with his wellbeing nearly eighty times!
There was a monumental dereliction of duty and care for this poor little mite and he was let down appallingly by very many people not just the seemingly unrepentant and defiant Ms Shoesmith.

We have I think Mr Balls to thank for the present situation, had it not been for his 'red mist' grandstanding and political expediency as he rode roughshod over the correct procedure things would have been handled in a far better way.
From a lay point of view, would it not have been possible by the relevant Council to have dispensed with her services without much if any compensation being paid.
If they had handed her written notice giving incompetence as the main reason adding of course a list of the errors made by her staff she would then have had the chance to refute the allegations in the proper way.

I really doubt she would have succeded as it seems to be only the method employed by the arrogant Mr Balls that has cost us the taxpayer dear rather than her being dismissed unfairly.

Perhaps Mr Balls should consider his future but I doubt that will happen.

Re: Sharon Shoesmith

It's a sad fact Hammer that no-one in public life seems to "consider their position" these days, other than to consider both it and the pension that goes with it to be theirs as a matter of right.

Balls and Shoesmith are both representative of the same "smash and grab" culture, that was introduced by the Blair government and has all but destroyed our once world class public service, and replaced it with a service packed to the gunwhales with unelected, uncaring, unaccountable career jobsworths.

Re: Sharon Shoesmith

plantman! I couldnt have put it better

Re: Sharon Shoesmith

So right, Hammer. I am appalled that this woman is going to essentially profit from a tragic event. An event for which she should take at least SOME responsibility.

Re: Sharon Shoesmith

I now read that Ms Shoesmith will be entitled to compensation of anything up to £2.5 million depending on what source you read.

The bizarre situation arose after our Supreme Court judges rejected applications to challenge a ruling that she was unfairly sacked following the systematic murder of the baby Peter. A decision they arrived at without looking through the case again.

This frankly expected decision induced brain dead Ed Balls the former childrens secretary to call for a change in the law.
The same lunatic Balls who publicly removed Shoesmith as Haringey Council's director of children's services by opening his large mouth before any vestage of brain had been put into gear, thereby in essence creating this travesty.

To heap further misery on the memory of Peter it is also confirmed that one of the of the evil creatures jailed over Baby P's death will walk free out of prison this Friday.

Jason Owen, the brother of Steven Barker was banged up just over two years ago for his part in the prolonged agony for this lad.
He was handed down an indeterminate sentence with a minimum of three years to be served back in May 2009.
As in many things these days that was reduced on appeal after it was decided there was not enough evidence he posed a future risk.

Astonishgly it is believed that Owen will also get a new ID and possibly cosmetic surgery to keep him safe!!!!

Re: Sharon Shoesmith

If I was Shoesmith I would hang my head in shame and creep away down the nearest hole . The last thing I would be thinking about would be compensation for my own incompetence...

Re: Sharon Shoesmith

I absolutely agree Meg, but there is no shame in her, and the arrogance of the woman is breathtaking. I must agree with Hammer as well though, that this travesty can be laid firmly at the door of Ed Balls, whose character, strangely enough, is absolutely on a par with Shoesmith. Like so many of our "masters" these days, neither of them can do any wrong so neither of them will ever have anything to apologise for. Terrifying...

Re: Sharon Shoesmith

I knew what the result of this would be the moment the news broke about Ed Balls pronouncement. He is well named, he has Balls for brains!!! So much for 'new' Labour - for that read 'Old' Tory!!!

I would suspect that a large chunk, if not the majority of the compensation will be swallowed up in paying legal fees, since Legal Aid has never been available for Tribunal representation.

Re: Sharon Shoesmith

Surely the blame must lie with the system and people like Ed Balls. The correct course of action would have been to have suspended Ms Shoesmith along with anyone else involved with this case.

A full and exhaustive public enquiry could have then been held and the actions of everyone involved scrutinised.
All those found to have been at fault including those at the top dealt with under employment legislation and yes dismissed if warranted and lawful.
Maybe this is too simplistic but my feeling is that if this method had been followed we the tax payer might not be facing a £2.5 million bill.

Interesting and very sad to note that almost every paper and medium that has carried the story are predominantly concerned and outraged about the possible payout to Ms Shoesmith. The real travesty that Baby Peter was killed by his mother and her friends- one of which is about to be liberated - seems to have slipped under the radar.

I would not want to disparage anything that has been said about Shoesmith as I believe she is as grotesque as she has been labelled.
However, we must remember that she did not do anything to harm the poor mite, the system did that by the way that successive governments have eroded Social Services coupled with the reluctance of the courts to protect and remove those children at risk.

Peter Connolly's death was an unspeakable tragedy, learning from these horrors we have to change laws, non effective ministers and most certainly governments so that we have done all we can to stop this happening again.

These media witch hunts are not going to improve the lot of endangered children and that surely first and foremost is what we need to do.