Children with Disabilities

16.2. Case Study 2

A fifteen year old boy in a residential placement was hit by a member of staff and disclosed this to another staff member. The Local Authority, the police and the boy’s advocate were contacted and the staff member concerned removed while the investigation took place. The advocate and staff at the home advised the Police about the young man’s method of communication and the advance preparation that would be needed. The advocate was asked to accompany the young man to the interview. It immediately became clear no preparation had been done and the interview was not conducted in a child focused manner. As a result the Police were unable to obtain a full account of the incident from the young person. The advocate gave feedback to the police about the inappropriate way the interview had been conducted. The case was eventually dropped. (Source: The Children’s Society, as cited by gov.uk, July 2009)