Children: Ofsted Report

Baroness Benjamin Excerpts

Wednesday 25th May 2011 Lords Chamber

[Lord Hill of Oareford]

My Lords, that is an extremely good point. The group that my honourable friend Mr Loughton has set up to advise him on responding to the Munro review includes health service representatives, I believe, but I shall speak to him specifically about the point to make sure that the importance of the role of health professionals that the noble Baroness emphasises is properly taken into account.

[Baroness Benjamin]

My Lords, we all know how vulnerable some children are because of adults who prey on them and get away with abusing them, as children do not always know how to protect themselves from abuse. What are my noble friend’s expectations of local authorities and their partners, including schools, about informing children of their right to protection from violence and the assistance that is available to them to keep them safe?

[Lord Hill of Oareford]

My Lords, one of the themes coming out from the Munro review and the Ofsted report, which I think is widely accepted, is the need to make sure that all our child protection systems put the interests of the child at their heart. The underlying critique that Professor Munro has developed is that, over time, the system has become more focused on a box-ticking, prescriptive approach, rather than putting the interests of the child at the heart of everything that we do. I accept the point made by my noble friend: we need to make sure that children are aware of their rights and the avenues that are open to them. The Ofsted report highlights the fact that children do not have a loud enough voice in the processes as they currently operate. We need to try to redress that balance.