I am working with a young man with a learning disability who has a paper round. He told me his older brother is bullying him into spending his wages on alcohol. What should I do?
This situation is defined as financial abuse of a vulnerable person and needs to be dealt with assertively as a safeguarding issue. Sadly, it is an issue for many people with disabilities, who have the capacity to manage their own money but not to manage pressure from family and friends who may seek to exploit them.
If the young man has a social worker, you need to alert them, as it may be that if he is on other benefits, then these too are being abused. Find an appropriate advocate for him if you feel unable to do this yourself.
The brother needs to be challenged and the parents made aware that this is happening. The police may also have to be involved.
Spend some time with the young person. He needs to understand it is not his fault and that no one deserves to be abused in this way.
Answered by Jeanie Lynch, who works for Barnardo’s and has 25 years’ experience of working with vulnerable children and families
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