Social worker's viewpoint!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Roisin]

Yes, this is a dreaded social worker's point of view! But before you switch off let me explain my background. I work as a SW in a hospital on the chronic alcoholic ward of a main hospital. I see people from as young as 26yrs old die of alcohol alone. Alcoholics are not only the old men you see on park benches drinking 9% cans of Tenants and plastic bottles of cider. They are young mothers and fathers who are dying before their time, leaving children behind, usually in the care of grandparents. With the right support, they might have been helped. My work is important to me because my own 26 yr old daughter is an alcohoic (yes SW's are people aswell with the same problems that others have) My co-workers do not know of my own personal circumstances. I see my daughter with the first stages of symptoms that I watch people die of every week. Like many of you, I am torn between what is best for my own grown up child and what is best for my grandchild. I belive I am fortunate/unfortunate in being able to view things from both sides. I can look at the social worker's point of view from a practical angle while my heart is breaking for my child and her child. As a social worker I can phone them up and quote all the legislation possible to get help for my child but without sucess, so I know how difficult it must be for others. My advice for each grandparent reading this is to put all your concerns in writing to your local social services. Always in writng! Every written contact has to be included on a file for each particular child. Get the name of the manager of the children and families team and write directly to them. Say you expect a reply within a given time. If you do not receive a reply in time, take your complaint to the next stage. If you are not satisfied, then ask in writing ,to make an official complaint at stage 1. If you are still not satisfied then make a request in writng to to go to stage 2 of the complaints procedure. You can continue this until stage 3. Stage 2 requires social services to employ 2 independent investigaters at about