Baby P death 10 years on: Expert warns of 'overloaded' child protection system

Ray Jones, emeritus professor of social work at Kingston University and St George's, University of London, said the child protection system has become "overloaded and overwhelmed" since the death of Baby Peter on 3 August 2007 in Haringey, London.

The death of 17-month-old Peter at the hands of his mother, her boyfriend and the boyfriend's brother led to widespread criticism of the social work profession and sparked a review of child protection in England, conducted by Professor Eileen Munro.

Jones, who wrote a book about the court case and subsequent media vilification of social workers and managers involved in Peter's care, said cuts to public services and "severe and stringent reductions" in benefits since 2010 has "moved many poorer families from deprivation to destitution", adding to children's services workloads.

Writing in the August edition of CYP Now, Jones said: "Since 2009, Section 47 enquiries have risen 93 per cent, child protection plans and conferences by 72 per cent and 66 per cent respectively, and care applications by 69 per cent.

"Instead of making life better and safer for children like Peter, the past 10 years have seen the child protection system become overloaded and overwhelmed, while at the same time children's social workers and services have been denigrated." 

Jones added that the introduction in November 2013 by Ofsted of more demanding inspection standards and "more demeaning" judgment categories - for example, rebranding "adequate" as "requires improvement" - has "compounded the difficulties".

To read the full article, click here or see the latest edition of CYP Now.