Closed petition Commission an independent review of social services to protect children

Closed on 22 January 2023

The Government should set up an independent review of social services to consider:
- whether all visits to children under 10 should be unannounced
- what can be done to ensure children with bruising and other warning signs of abuse are identified and protected, including through immediate removal

The review should also consider:
- whether the family of a child with 3 days' unauthorised absence from school in a row should be visited by social services as a rule
- whether and how biological parents should be kept informed, and under which circumstances
- whether it should be a requirement that children are questioned during a visit without their parents present, and under which circumstances.

To help protect children from neglect and abuse, the social services system should be reviewed to ensure that any child identified with any type of bruising or other signs of potential abuse is supported with urgent care, as set out above.