A members viewoint

Hi Jimmy

I know that under the Scotland Act 1995 the family (grandparents aunts and other family members) should be the first people that social services seek out concerning children who are being taken into care but its as you say social services do contact some family members but it is usually in an bullying fashion which most of us with grandchildren in our care are only to familiar with. This practise by social services makes life so very hard for the family members which have the children in their care. Instead of soci8al services following the guidance of the 95 Act which states that when social services place a child with a family member then that family should be treated as any other foster carer which the council have placed children with. We know this guidance is not followed by most local authorities and it leaves most family members struggling and in hardship trying to bring up their young relative(s).

Its as you say there are too many unanswered questions. Glasgow councillors should hang their heads in shame for the way they treat relatives of children who are being taken into care. Its 16 years since we first had dealings with Glasgow Council concerning our grandchildren and they have not made any improvement in their policies concerning relatives of "looked after children" as far as I know. As you know Jimmy we moved from Glasgow to Highland with our grandchildren in 1998 and Highland Council had a policy in place then for "relative carers" and although the allowance was only half the amount of non related foster carers it was still there. Glasgow had no policy in place at that time and correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think they have one now. Five years ago Highland started paying kinship carers the same as non related foster carers this was before the supposedly review from the Scottish executive said that all councils should pay kinship carers the same as foster carer although the brats had forgot to tell the kinship carers that all the councils in Scotland had 2 years to implement the monies.

It would not be so bad if it was just the grandparents that were kept in poverty but its the children mostly (looked after) children by the local authorities which are kept in the poverty trap its just an ongoing disgrace and all these politicians and public sector workers should really be answerable in court for the way they twist things to suit themselves.

Keep up the great work Jimmy without yourselves banging the drum I don't know what grandparents would do. Take care love C---- x