Working Effectively and Safely with Men in Childrens Services

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Working Effectively and Safely with Men in
Childrens Services

• Clare Roskill
• Freelance Consultant
• October 5th 2007
• Newcastle

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What is a difficult father?

• Covers a multitude of behaviours
• In context of Childrens Services a father may be
  seen as difficult if, for example, he
• Verbally abuses staff
• Fails supervised contact appointments
• Writes letters of complaint
• Demands scarce resources
• Asks for weekend appointments

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What is a dangerous father?

• A father who is an actual or potential risk to a
  child through
• abuse to child or neglect
• violence to the childs mother or carer
• substance abuse
• More controversially, is a father a dangerous
  father if he
• is involved in activities away from home that
  threaten his own life?
• Is involved in activities away from home that
  cause violence to others?
• works very long hours?

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Why work with fathers who are dangerous?

• The best interests of the child are paramount
• The same father can be both a risk and a resource
  
• Behaviour is not static and change does happen.
  We need to balance immediate/ medium term safety
  with possibilities of improved relationships in
  the longer term
• Our own concepts of dangerousness may be
  influenced by our own experiences, and our
  willingness to engage with such fathers
• Assessment of dangerousness is not an exact
  science

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With few exceptions children want to be in
contact with their fathers

• They want fathers who
• are good fun have hobbies they can do with them
  have money
• are not too hung up on work
• show love and provide physical contact
• set boundaries
• support them and are interested in them
• (Milligan and Dowie, 1998)

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• A threat to women and children, being involved
  in a large amount of domestic violence and drugs
  possibly involved in sexual or other forms of
  abuse
• (Scourfield ,J, Critical Social Policy 26(2)
  2006)
• Of little or no use, being uncommitted to family
  life, unable to take responsibility, or absent
• (Scourfield, J, see also above)
• A threat to themselves because of their physical
  appearances such as skinhead or very large
  physique
• (Ferguson, H, Hogan, F, 2004)

Social workers working within the context of
child protection may have reservations about some
fathers, seeing them as e.g
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Different theoretical approaches inform both
assessment and treatment

• Attachment theory Violence seen as a response to
  loss and grief
• Cognitive behavioural approaches Learnt
  behaviour can be changed
• Feminist approaches male violence as exercise of
  power over women and children

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Theoretical approaches (continued)

• Solution-focused practice emphasises finding
  safe goals for offender/victim/professionals.
  Does not try to explain or predict
• Narrative approach emphasises replacing
  unhelpful life stories and labelling by self and
  others
• (Milner,J, and Myers, S, Working with Violence,
  Policies and Practices in Risk Assessment and
  Management, 2007)

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Risk Assessment Factors

• Some highly significant factors are (nearly)
  unchangeable e.g.
• male
• young low socio-economic group
• poverty
• low IQ.
• abusive upbringing
• previous offending
• The application of risk assessment within
  criminal justice is a bit like betting on a race
  when the outcome is known in advance.
• (Horsefield 2003)

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• Therefore a number of highly significant
  factors influencing likelihood of violence cannot
  be changed. However there are other more
  dynamic factors, some of which may - with very
  great difficulty- be open to change, e.g.
• employment
• reducing damaging use of drugs and alcohol
• victim empathy
• anger management
• impulsiveness

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• Public protection re registered sex offenders,
  violent offenders and others who may pose a
  serious risk to the public depends on
• Defensible decisions
• Rigorous, but not full proof, risk assessment-
  e.g. OASys ( Offender Assessment System)
• Delivery of risk assessment plans that match
  public need for protection
• Evaluation
• ( Kemshall, H, 2003)

Multi-agency Public Protection Arrangements
(MAPPA) for the most serious offenders, resulting
in closer working arrangements between police,
probation and other local agencies
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• NO RISK ASSESSMENT IS FULLY PREDICTIVE

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Good Risk Management

• Local agencies should
• Plan and coordinate how each local agency fulfils
  its respective role
• Draw up joint protocols on information sharing
  who will share, how, when and what information
• Be clear as to the respective roles of the
  different agencies and how they will record their
  involvement
• Monitor that these roles are fulfilled
• Agree a joint plan for the evaluation of work
  undertaken

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• Local agency workers should
• Use as rigorous as possible assessments,
  whatever their limitations at this point in time
• Be trained to question appropriately re detail,
  frequency, severity of violence
• Never condone violence but should be willing to
  listen to the complexities of individual
  histories
• Never accept perpetrators denial, minimising or
  refusal to accept damaging effects of violent
  behaviour
• Receive support and good quality, regular
  supervision

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When and how to involve violent men in contact
arrangements with their children

• The contact must be safe and positive for the
  child. Contact is NOT ALWAYS appropriate
• Lord Justice Wall Feb 2006 report to President
  of Family Division. 29 children from 13 different
  families murdered by their fathers 1994-2004
• In 5 cases contact ordered by court3 by consent
• Family Justice Council - risk assessment should
  be undertaken by court in cases of DV, before
  consent order made

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• Contact (continued)
• LJ Wall stressed need for
• further training re DV for those involved in
  court cases, including solicitors, barristers,
  judges
• Victims of DV to be aware of damage to children.
  It is a failure to protect child emotionally (and
  sometimes physically)
• Where highly conflicting accounts of DV, voice of
  child should be heard
• CAFCASS screening in contact and residence
  applications should be extended nationally
• Unsupervised contact should not necessarily
  follow supervised contact

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When, if at all, to include women/mothers in work
with men re domestic violence

• Need to consider
• Continuing risks to children and adult victim
• Factors associated with risk of further assaults
  - history of DV current stressors other
  activity that may provoke the DV such as
  substance misuse mental state
• Perpetrators attitude to DV- whether remorseful
  in denial extent of motivation to take change
  attitude to male dominance

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• Be very cautious about joint work with a couple
  experiencing DV unless you are a specialist or
  you have carried out a thorough risk assessment
  and have agreed with manager that there is little
  or no further danger to woman and/ or child
  unlikely
• But do not ignore the mans needs
• If he is motivated, try to find a specialist
  perpetrator programme which will help him
  understand his violence and learn different ways
  of behaving. Programmes mainly of up to 75 hours
• A number offer separate support services for
  women.

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Some Strategies and Points for Action for
Father-Inclusive Services

• Check whether published policies and procedures
  set out specifically how fathers will be
  involved. They tend to be subsumed as parents
  mothers
• Restructure agency forms so that they encourage
  the seeking and retaining of information on
  fathers
• Develop a father-inclusive work culture, with an
  expectation that fathers will be sought out,
  whether near or far, in prison, in hospital, off
  the scene. Worker safety should not however be
  jeopardized
• Implement the duty on LA to consult both parents
  re decisions about the child, irrespective of
  whether the father has Parental Responsibility or
  not.

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Strategies and Points for Action (continued)

• Engage young fathers before, during and after
  their childs birth and ensure they have a role
  to play in the childs life. Unplanned does not
  mean unwanted.
• Remember that the most significant father figure
  may be a step-father or mothers partner.
• Develop local resources that welcome fathers. Do
  not assume these necessarily have to involve
  activities or sports. Some fathers like to talk!
• Be prepared to be flexible about times and dates
  for meeting fathers

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Strategies and Points for Action (continued)

• Meet fathers without prejudgement, whatever their
  history.
• Consider the paternal relatives - often
  overlooked as a resource
• Family Group Conferences can be a very positive
  way of re-engaging the father and/ or the
  paternal family network
• Encourage the development of further community
  resources to support fathers with history pattern
  of violence
• (Fathers Matter, 2006, Family Rights Group and
  ongoing
• ,

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• Whenever possible help to make the father a
  positive resource for the child rather than seen
  as

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