Child welfare always trumps reputational damage - John McLellan

Nearly 1500 people have signed the petition calling for an independent national inquiry into mishandled child protection allegations, and now the campaign seeks to improve way the General Teaching Council Scotland handles information from whistle-blowers.

Child protection is key

The GTCS oversees professional standards in schools, but in the first instance refers complaints back to employers who may have a vested interest in dismissing concerns. In Edinburgh there was ample evidence of teachers who raised child protection issues with their superiors themselves being threatened with disciplinary action.

I spoke to two, yet their claims were discounted by the Tanner Inquiry, which did not look at the written evidence they provided on the basis that the council had handed over all the necessary documents.

Campaigners argue an independent National Whistleblowing Officer for all children’s services is needed to ensure employers do not control investigations and the experience of the teachers I met bears this out.

There is a precedent in the NHS, which established a similar role in April last year for the very reason that some whistle-blowers who raised patient care issues had been ‘gaslighted’ by their superiors.

Local authorities continue to prioritise their own reputations on the spurious pretext of retaining public trust and not damaging staff morale, but the current system is loaded against those employees who highlight legitimate concerns.

It shouldn’t need a public inquiry to establish processes which put child welfare at the top of the system, but the many allegations at Edinburgh Council show just how badly needed it is.