FILMING/RECORDING A CPC

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JAY VEE
Posts: 14
Joined: Thu Oct 04, 2018 5:17 pm

FILMING/RECORDING A CPC

Post by JAY VEE » Tue Nov 27, 2018 11:23 pm

I had the misfortune of having to attend a CPC today. I had a large file of things I wanted to say & was also willing to listen to those present.Before the meeting started,I informed the IRO that I intended to record the meeting for my own records & peace of mind as previous minutes from SS meetings have been late,non-existent &/or filled with errors.He looked like he was going to die of shock & left to seek legal advice.He returned a short while later saying he would ask the other attendees individually & if they agreed,then I could go ahead.They all stated that they did not want to be recorded.Generally,none of them had any idea about the legality & pointed out that "safeguarding" was their main issue.I left the meeting but my wife stayed.

I did tell the IRO that I had no intention to share,edit or distribute the recording with anyone other than my solicitor.Can anyone tell me if my request/intention to record has breached any laws or if the IRO (who is directly employed by the local authority) has broken any laws? I fully understand that safeguarding is paramount but at what cost? I keep hearing that term as a reason to hide the truth.

Miserylovescompany2
Posts: 220
Joined: Sun Jul 02, 2017 6:55 pm

Re: FILMING/RECORDING A CPC

Post by Miserylovescompany2 » Wed Nov 28, 2018 11:38 am

As far as I am aware there are no laws against regarding if this is for your own personal use. I would request a written explanation and for a copy of the Local Authorities policy.

I do know that you can record PIP assessments however only a specific recording device can be used. Similar to the one the police used with duel recording using two identical tape cassettes. This is the guidance from our government - you could use this as an example.

You could formally seek consent from each agency involved - outlining how the recording well be used and stored. Request a written response detailing why consent has been denied.

Good luck on getting a straight answer :/

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Suzie, FRG Adviser
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Joined: Mon Jul 04, 2011 2:57 pm

Re: FILMING/RECORDING A CPC

Post by Suzie, FRG Adviser » Fri Nov 30, 2018 3:01 pm

JAY VEE wrote: Tue Nov 27, 2018 11:23 pm I had the misfortune of having to attend a CPC today. I had a large file of things I wanted to say & was also willing to listen to those present.Before the meeting started,I informed the IRO that I intended to record the meeting for my own records & peace of mind as previous minutes from SS meetings have been late,non-existent &/or filled with errors.He looked like he was going to die of shock & left to seek legal advice.He returned a short while later saying he would ask the other attendees individually & if they agreed,then I could go ahead.They all stated that they did not want to be recorded.Generally,none of them had any idea about the legality & pointed out that "safeguarding" was their main issue.I left the meeting but my wife stayed.

I did tell the IRO that I had no intention to share,edit or distribute the recording with anyone other than my solicitor.Can anyone tell me if my request/intention to record has breached any laws or if the IRO (who is directly employed by the local authority) has broken any laws? I fully understand that safeguarding is paramount but at what cost? I keep hearing that term as a reason to hide the truth.
Dear JAY VEE

Thank you for your further post.

I see that you wished to record the child protection conference which I assume was an initial child protection conference. It is not clear from your post whether you had given any previous indication to the social worker that you wished to record the conference and that would probably have removed the element of shock and surprise from the Chair of the conference if this was made known before.

The chair sought advice from the legal department and was advised to seek consent from the other professionals attending the conference. I do not think any laws have been broken in you not being allowed to record and neither would you breach any law by making a recording provided it was not disclosed to a third party. You could ask your local authority for their policy on recordings especially in relation to children’s services.

You may wish to look at Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 which might assist you in respect of the legality of individual making recordings as well as the guidance from the Transparency Project about parents recording meetings with social workers.

I hope this is helpful.

Best wishes

Suzie

JAY VEE
Posts: 14
Joined: Thu Oct 04, 2018 5:17 pm

Re: FILMING/RECORDING A CPC

Post by JAY VEE » Fri Dec 07, 2018 1:22 pm

Thankyou for reply,
I did consult the RIPA Act 2000,the Data Protection Act 1998 and the Transparency Project beforehand and found them all to be useful.I also spoke to solicitors and doctors and police officers.All of them advised that I speak to the IRO before the meeting took place which I did.I felt strongly that a recording would be beneficial-perhaps even to other professionals and after speaking to my wife who stayed in the meeting,this has proven to be correct.The minutes (taken by an LA employee) were inaccurate and left out several key points and were more about"punishing" us as parents than about concern for the wellbeing of a child-which is surely the entire basis of a CPC. I would advise all parents/carers to read up as much as possible on recording meetings and to record to their hearts content.

Miserylovescompany2
Posts: 220
Joined: Sun Jul 02, 2017 6:55 pm

Re: FILMING/RECORDING A CPC

Post by Miserylovescompany2 » Fri Dec 07, 2018 1:28 pm

I shall be following your lead and doing the same. I am currently on the receiving end of utter fabrication. So I think recording would be the way forward. I have as you did politely requested - however I was not given a NO. So I will take that as a green light...

JAY VEE
Posts: 14
Joined: Thu Oct 04, 2018 5:17 pm

Re: FILMING/RECORDING A CPC

Post by JAY VEE » Sun Dec 09, 2018 11:14 pm

I understand fully the "utter fabrication " part.Everything said against us in the reports written for CPC was either downright lies or a complete deviation from the truth.One thing that was said was "The parents failed to bring X to an appointment with XXX Clinic." The truth (if they had bothered to check) was we the parents made the appointment at the clinic only to get a call from an SW saying they had taken X to another clinic- after we had made the appointment but before the appointment date.We then had to ring the clinic and cancel ,as it was no longer neccesary for us to attend. I sometimes wish we had been put before a real court where we would have rights:(

321321
Posts: 14
Joined: Tue Sep 13, 2016 11:31 pm

Re: FILMING/RECORDING A CPC

Post by 321321 » Fri Feb 01, 2019 7:25 pm

There is no law against covert recordings. It's best not to tell social workers that they are being recorded. You are more likely to catch them out being verbally abusive, aggressive or dishonest with you that way.

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