Quote of the day
“Unfortunately mistakes sometimes happen”
- a statement from OFSTED in response to their failure to disclose a 70-page inspection report to the court reviewing Sharon Shoesmith’s sacking. The ex-chief of Haringey’s children’s services says she was unfairly sacked after the Baby P abuse case. In addition to notes from an OFSTED inspector being withheld, drafts of the inspection report were also not revealed during the judicial review hearing brought by Ms Shoesmith last month. In their statement, OFSTED added that “we have nothing to hide.” Ms Shoesmith, 56, was dismissed from her post as children’s services chief at Haringey in December, following the damning 2008 joint area review report, which concluded there had been “insufficient strategic leadership and management oversight” in the safeguarding of local children.
Witanagemot Blogs
Every layer of this government is rotten. I’m no longer conviced we can right any of it.
Yes – it’s just as bad as “Procedures were followed”, which usually ought to be finished off with “common sense was not”.
I would be very interested to know what was in the report and who exactly made the decision to withold it. There is no way that this was a mistake, you only withold a report of this nature if it goes contrary to the story you want to present.
Did the government set Shoesmith up, a convenient target for public rage? Or is was she as incompetent as we all suspected she was? Either way, the government has already had its own way, giving the impression that they have shot the culprit in front of a satisfied media and public.