How much money can Children's Services expect you to spend?

Adela31

Obviously, my childrens health is priceless... but a saggy sofa was the least of our worries.

So far its been a new Sofa (£300, its very nice, but I was trying to hold out) a new hoover (the Dyson pull-along style wasnt picking up enough aparently, its gotten a bit old, but I've now bought an upright, £120) the carpet in the hall is old (its the newest one in the house actually, but a bad buy, it frayed so quickly)

But Ultimately, my kitchen "isnt big enough to socialise in" ... can't build an extension on a first floor flat, what can they expect you to spend? Especially if you work part time?

thegirlintheattic

Can we have some more detail?

bigmomma051204

Your post makes no real sense. I assume that children's services have been involved as there is an issue of concern over their care. And that as part of their assessment of the living conditions for your children, they have made certain recommendations or possibly even instructed you to change certain things in your home to make the environment more suitable for your children to reside in.

So what is the problem? If you are struggling to meet the financial costs of the changes, let your social worker know as they will more than likely be able to access some funding or at least subsidise partly the costs.

Perhaps if you explain more, then i wont have to guess and assume!

And for the record, i am positive that childrens services would hardly be involved simply because you have a small kitchen and a saggy sofa, for goodness sake! As they themselves place families into bedsits which have no room for a sofa and/or have no actual kitchen to speak of i truly cannot see those being the only "issues"....

I can only imagine that you needed a new sofa possibly because there was a safety issue with the one you had? And that you were told to get a hoover because the floors were dirty and you had no way of keeping them clean. And perhaps, again, the carpet being frayed is a safety issue - especially if it is by the stairs or somewhere else that a trip over fraying carpet would be detrimental to the safety of a child.....?

Oh and why on earth would a kitchen need to be "big enough to socialise in..."......?!?! I find it hard to believe that children's services in ANY area of the UK is so underwhelmed that they have nothing better to do than berate people like you (?) who apparently have no issues other than those you have mentioned. It sounds to me (with the limited info u have provided) that you are trying to trivialise the issues to get some moral support on here and therefore justify to yourself that there is nothing wrong........

Sorry if that is all wrong. Perhaps if you came back and gave some more info, we would be able to help and advise rather than just guessing!

Alikay

I guess replacing soft furnishings like bedlinen, pillows and duvets and making sure windows all have blinds or curtains up is pretty important, and freshens the place up noticeably. A big new rug will make a big difference too and can be got pretty cheaply.

Edited to add:
I don't mean replace soft furnishings so that they coordinate with the decor- that's obviously completely unimportant!. I mentioned it as fabrics when old and tatty are harder to clean up, and can harbour smells etc - particularly old duvets. Blinds or curtains are important for privacy and to differentiate day and night (so helping children to sleep and wake at appropriate times). From what the OP has posted on other threads it appears that the home may be quite cluttered, so it would probably be better to remove things (to charity shops etc) rather than bring more stuff into the house.

It may be better to simply ask the social workers what specific improvements they expect, so you don't waste energy doing what you think they want you to do!

Adela31

I do need new soft furnishings, as the sofa I picked doesnt go with anything!

I guess I didnt explain myself very well. Social services were asked, by the supervisor of my councilor, if they had any suggestions of any help for me, after I had been suffering with depression for a while, and I felt the housework had become rather out of hand. I was attending to the most obvious needs, as in keeping the small kitchen and even smaller bathroom hygenic, but my own bedroom has become well, the depository of everything that has no home anywhere else!

The problem is all me, and yet after the home visit it was decided that my children should be placed on a child protection register. Which has left me rather confused, but I am trying my best to comply with all the requests, but there hasnt been any allowance for the fact that I might be a bit slow.

I can continue to work on the other, cheaper suggestions (like decluttering books, I put a copy of 5 plays by chekov in the charity bag today, after all I am already depressed, don't want to get worse)

Thank you all for your replies and attention, I probably dont deserve as much as I have,

A

shegirl

Adela31 wrote: »

I do need new soft furnishings, as the sofa I picked doesnt go with anything!

I guess I didnt explain myself very well. Social services were asked, by the supervisor of my councilor, if they had any suggestions of any help for me, after I had been suffering with depression for a while, and I felt the housework had become rather out of hand. I was attending to the most obvious needs, as in keeping the small kitchen and even smaller bathroom hygenic, but my own bedroom has become well, the depository of everything that has no home anywhere else!

The problem is all me, and yet after the home visit it was decided that my children should be placed on a child protection register. Which has left me rather confused, but I am trying my best to comply with all the requests, but there hasnt been any allowance for the fact that I might be a bit slow.

I can continue to work on the other, cheaper suggestions (like decluttering books, I put a copy of 5 plays by chekov in the charity bag today, after all I am already depressed, don't want to get worse)

Thank you all for your replies and attention, I probably dont deserve as much as I have,

A

I'm pretty sure that a frayed carpet and saggy sofa weren't concerns of theirs but maybe they thought refreshing the home would make you feel a bit better,more positive and energetic?

They don't really expect you to be out spending money as such so I guess this thread is more of a desperate rant than anything?

Adela31

It probably is I looked for a forum for people in my situation, but I feel a bit bad posting there, no one is beating me up (except myself). I dont struggle with the offical language used or forms, my kids dont have any behaviourial issues (except bouncing on the sofa) and they excel at school.

geminilady

I understand how things can get out of hand when suffering from depression.Has it improved now and are you on medication for it?.Maybe the councilor thought social services would help you improve or tidy your place but all they seem to have done is give you a list of things to do which can be overwhelming when you have depression.I do not think they will expect you to do everything at once but think if they visit they will be looking for some improvement.If you can afford it you should replace the frayed carpet as someone said the children could trip and injure themselves.If you are short of funds I would tell them so and maybe you will get some help.If my children had been put on the child protection list I would be asking why.

kingfisherblue

I think that there may be more to this than has been posted. An adult having depression and resulting problems with housework do not result in children being added to the At Risk Register.

I have Social Service involvement through their Children With Disabilities Team, as my son is disabled and has high care needs. I also have depression. I am not a naturally tidy person and the house is untidy at times, although obviously I keep it clean. SS have seen my sons' bedroom - because they share and they wanted to see if there was anything that they could do to help. My disabled son needs a lot of care overnight and this can disturb his brother. However, they did not look at my daughter's bedroom or my bedroom, as neither of these rooms were relevant to helping to coping with my son's needs.

My furniture is old and my sofa was second hand when I bought it. I use a sweeping brush and mop for my laminated flooring, although I do hoover upstairs where there is carpet. I struggle with the stairs, as both my daughter and I have problems with our shoulders (mine due to a damaged muscle and my daughter due to a tumour), so I do the stairs by hand, using a scraper thing that is designed for getting rid of pet hairs (works well for everything though!)

My point is that SS do not expect people to spend on unnecessary furniture or household equipment, or give them money to do so, unless there are serious concerns. As for having to replace soft furnishings because they don't match the new furniture, well TBH, I probably wouldn't bother. I might replace things slowly,as and when I could afford it, but it is more important to deal with issues that have resulted in the children being identified as At Risk.

Adela31

I think I have my answer, I need a different social worker. Although the carpet has frayed, I have cut any loose bits, leaving a wee bald patch where the join was, nothing that could cause tripping. (Just annoyance, that carpet started to go when it was less than a year old, grumble grumble)

My children are both statemented with disabilities, and share a room with bunk beds. We havent been added to any register yet, I think they are still preparing a case. Any other adults who are involved with my kids are confused by this accusation, as I have a happy pair of bright wee lads, who have no other health problems.

thegirlintheattic

You need to get to the bottom of why your children are being given a child protection plan. It wouldn't be for old furnishings or getting a bit behind on housework. It would have to have got to the point that you were neglecting the children or the home was unsafe (assuming there is no abuse).

TBH your story doesn't make sense at the moment.