Baby P: Haringey Council Praised His ‘Loverly Parents’
BABY P: What the media is saying about Maria Ward and Gillie Christou (left) two social workers dismissed from Haringey Council following the death of Peter Connelly. The two are at Watford Employment Tribunal claiming their sacking was unfair.
Ms Ward, 40, was Peter’s social worker and Mrs Christou, 52, her team manager.
Tracey Connelly, her boyfriend Steven Barker, and his brother Jason Owen caused or allowed the 17-month-old child’s death.
The Sun, which campaigned for them to be sacked, reports:
LIES told by Baby P’s mother about the tortured mite’s injuries were “accepted without challenge” by his key social worker, a tribunal heard yesterday.
Antonella Lazzeri has more on “Evil Baby P’s mum”:
Ms Ward was warned by a worried childminder the tot had a big bruise on his chin.
She contacted Peter’s mum Tracey Connelly to ask how he got it. Connelly – one of three people jailed for causing or allowing the child’s death in 2007 – told her the injury was an old one.
The Tabloids
Gillie Christou says she and Maria Ward (pictured below) were unfairly sacked by the council over the case “to appease the tabloid press and politicians”.
“Haringey were wrong to make us scapegoats and to add our names to the list of Tracey Connelly’s victims.”
Sue Gilmore – a senior social worker in Haringey at the time
Ms Gilmore wrote a note on Peter’s case file, which read: “I gave her (Connelly) feedback, saying that she had been very open and honest about difficult things and said I was impressed that she had coped so well with so many difficulties.”
And:
On a separate occasion Ms Gilmore publicly praised Peter’s mother, the tribunal in Watford, Hertfordshire, was told. Ms Ward said: “She said, ‘Maria has (ie, is working with) such lovely parents – don’t let her tell you she’s having trouble with them’.”
The Culture
The tribunal was also told that Ms Ward believed Connelly was on her own, not in a relationship.
But it emerged last year that Connelly told Ms Gilmore of a new love in March 2007 in a filmed interview, which was not shown to Ms Ward at the time.
She said: “Had I been told about this, I am sure that I would have become suspicious of Ms Connelly’s denial to me that she had a boyfriend.”Ms Ward alleged that Ms Gilmour was not someone “to be challenged lightly”.
The Lawyer
TRAGIC Baby P’s fate was sealed by an inexperienced locum lawyer from Australia, a tribunal heard yesterday.
Lesley Davis ruled little Peter Connelly should stay with his evil mother as she chaired a planning meeting to decide if he should be taken into care, it was said.
Nine days later the tortured 17-month-old child was dead. A review by the legal department of North London’s Haringey Council later found that Miss Davis had been acting as a locum and was inexperienced.
In the Telegraph:
Nick Toms, representing social workers Maria Ward, 40, and Gillian Christou, 52, who are claiming unfair dismissal, said it was unfair that they had been sacked while Miss Davis, who has since returned to Australia, escaped with a warning.
He said the lawyer’s decision had had “serious consequences” that led “to the death of Peter Connelly”.
Blame Haringey
Claire Kober, leader of Haringey Council, says:
“I cannot overestimate the extent to which things were utterly broken when I became leader. This was an authority that had had two high-profile child deaths in eight years… Children in Haringey were not safe and our number one priority was to make sure they were safe.”
The case continues…
COURTS Baby 134204
PLEASE NOTE MANDATORY CREDIT REQUIRED ITV NEWS. NO CROPPING OF LOGO PERMITTED. Undated ITV News handout photo of Baby P. A court order banning publication of the name of Baby P's mother and boyfriend expires at 2359 today. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Issue date: Monday August 10, 2009. See PA story COURTS Baby. Photo credit should read: ITV News/PA Wire
Posted: 24th, September 2010 | In: Reviews Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
