Scapegoats row over sackings in child starvation case

A council criticised over the death from starvation of a seven-year-old girl was accused of "casting around for scapegoats" yesterday after it revealed that six social workers had been sacked.

The front-line workers were dismissed over the past year for not doing their jobs properly at Birmingham City Council, which is taking part in a serious case review into the death of Khyra Ishaq.

Khyra died in 2008 when her body succumbed to an infection after months of starvation at her home in Handsworth, Birmingham. Her mother and stepfather were both jailed last week for her manslaughter.

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The director of children's social care at the council, Colin Tucker, said the sacked staff showed "no sign whatsoever" of meeting expected standards.

In an interview with the BBC, he said: "They did not adhere to

standards and expectations that we laid down.

"They showed no sign whatsoever that they were keen to do so, so we dismissed them."

Mr Tucker was brought in last year after Ofsted inspectors branded aspects of Birmingham City Council's children's department as "inadequate".

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The authority said the dismissals were not directly related to Khyra's death, which followed several attempts by social workers to visit her after she was removed from school in December 2007.

But public sector union Unison branded Mr Tucker's claims "misleading and irresponsible" and warned that they would fuel an "exodus" of social workers from the council.

The union's regional head of local government, Tony Rabaiotti, said: "Mr Tucker should think more carefully before he opens his mouth and makes misleading and irresponsible claims.

"None of the social workers he claims he has sacked had anything to do with child care, let alone the case of Khyra Ishaq."

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He added: "He may think that talking tough will hide Birmingham City Council's management from responsibility in the sad death of Khyra, but he is wrong.

"All it does is undermine staff confidence, which is already at an all-time low."

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