Reports feared for child services

The reports have highlighted problems within Doncaster children's services

Warnings about the standard of child protection work in Doncaster were first raised four years ago in an internal report, the BBC has learned.

A report from 2005 mentioned "serious" problems in the South Yorks council's children's services department.

A second document, in 2007, said social workers were so overwhelmed there were concerns for their mental health.

The council said it was committed to making "rapid improvements" and would "take all necessary" steps to do so.

After the 2007 report was written, five children who were known to Doncaster social services died over a seven-month period.

The reports were handed to BBC social affairs correspondent Alison Holt, as part of a Panorama investigation.

'Openly distressed'

The report from 2005 said the re-organisation of Doncaster's children's services was not good enough to protect children.

And the report two years later, which is described as being more detailed, continues to point out the shortcomings of the department.

The second report referred to details on vulnerable children "buried quite literally in a pile of other referrals".

In the case of one baby, known as Child A, who was found dead in his pram in 2007, a serious case review revealed 10 referrals had been made to social services relating to fears for his safety.

It said: "Overall the response to these referrals was grossly inadequate."

The restructure that took place in 2005 was one of the reasons that children services is experiencing some of the problems it currently is Paul Hart Doncaster Council Managing Director 'Chaotic' council team failed boy Doncaster children: Who are they?

The 2007 report also found the morale of staff and team managers to be "extremely low", with some staff "openly distressed" in interviews.

The news comes as the interim director of children's services for Doncaster, Dr Paul Gray, leaves his post.

He is being is replaced on 1 April by Gareth Williams, who held a similar post in Leicester.

Managing director of Doncaster Council Paul Hart said: "Both the government and the council are committed to making rapid improvements within the service and will take all necessary decisions to achieve the improvements."

Mr Hart added: "It has been widely acknowledged through the diagnostic report that the restructure that took place in 2005 was one of the reasons that children's services is experiencing some of the problems it currently is.

"The council appointed me as interim MD in May 2007 and I immediately instigated a change in management arrangements to appoint a Director of Children's Services (DCS) to manage the service and make recommendations for improvement.

"The DCS reported in December 2007 and immediate action was agreed by the executive to begin to deal with the problems identified."

In January, a crisis meeting into the state of the town's child protection services heard that more than 300 youngsters were at risk of abuse in Doncaster.

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