Using evidence to challenge prevailing ideology

Listening to FathersMen’s experience of child protection

Nick Smithers

The ContextTurn of the 21st Century 80% of fathers live with all children

13% of fathers do not live with any children of which 70% remain in contact

(Burghes, Clark and Cronin, 1997).

Children in child protection system: 38% with both parent 31% with lone mother 28% reconstituted family 2% with lone father

The figures for those still with both parents drops sharply as child protection proceedings continue (Daniel and Taylor 2001).

Children in child protection system have significantly less access to their fathers than the wider population

Research and Practice

Consensus about positive role fathers play in children’s lives

But … discourses that stereotype, label and marginalise men dominate

Fathers continue to be systematically excluded from the child protection system

Child Protection Context

Munro Review – concluded that instead of “doing things right” (i.e. following procedures) the system needed to be focused on doing the right thing (i.e. checking whether children and young people are being helped)

Identified- a commonly held belief that the complexity and associated uncertainty of child protection work can be eradicated

PatriarchyMale privilegeNeed to challenge male power – hence ‘perpetrator’ label, holding men to accountPrepetrator ProgrammesArgued to be feminist but stuck in second wave feminism‘It’s feminist because I say so’ (Orme, 2003) denies ‘the complexity and diversity of women’s experience and the richness of feminist theories that explore and explain that experience.’ and ‘the complex and multi-layered operation of power …., whatever their gender’ Evident in unreflective practice based around a one-dimensional view of men and around ideology rather than evidence

Fathers in Child Protection Cases

• No use• Absent – Ghost Fathers• One dimensional – men as ‘bad’, mothers as ‘good’• As ‘risky’• Clapton’s work on fathers’ portrayal in social work

literature – either invisible or abusive• Some even whisper of men as a resource

Curriculum for excellence

Early Years Framework

Listening to Fathers

Who’s looking after my son I dinnae know, I was panicking through all this all thoughts going through my head. I couldnae sleep, crying at night realising that I needed to do something about this because the social work are nae doing nothing about it.

Allegations : Believe the Victim

He asked me what actually happened that day and I told him and I said ‘I’ve no been convicted of the assault charge’ and he said ‘no matter what, that’ll always be used against ye.’

Cognitive Dissonance

She said ‘You don’t look good on paper’

I said ‘No Hen, but you wrote the paper’

Gendered Analysis of Domestic Abuse

Is this an untouchable theory despite lack of empirical foundation?

What’s it like to speak out?

Lets consider the ethics of VAW activism …

Is it endangering women and children as well as marginalising men?

What does the evidence tell us?

Case Study

DV Perpetrator Programme

Reoffending Psychometric data from a cohort of 31 individuals who

completed the Inner Strength. Reoffending data from the 18 (58 %) participants who have

been released from custody System checks using Police computers including PNC, OPUS and

Icis. Additional checks for involvement in Domestic Abuse calls to

the police. No evidence could be found to link any of the cohort with

Domestic abuse reoffending since release = 0% proven reoffending.