June 2002 Archived News

Tuesday 11 June 2002
INQUIRY TO RECONVENE HEARINGS


THE VICTORIA CLIMBIÉ Inquiry is to reconvene its public sessions after being sent an important document three weeks after the closure of its original hearings by the Social Services Inspectorate (SSI).

The document is an internal review of an earlier report into the state of Haringey social services, which declared - in November 1999 - that service-users in the borough were “generally well served”.

However, the latter document comments on the earlier one saying that it presented “an overly positive picture of Haringey’s social services, particularly children’s services”.

The initial report was referred to by a number of witnesses from Haringey in their evidence to the Inquiry. It was produced by the Joint Review (JR), a body that assesses social services departments for value for money and quality of service.

The second document was commissioned by the SSI and Audit Commission, which oversee the JR. It was finalised in April 2001. Three months later, the SSI agreed to provide the Inquiry with all the documents in its possession that were relevant to the Inquiry’s terms of reference. It sent the internal review to the Inquiry on 26 February.

An Inquiry spokesman said: “Lord Laming has decided that this new document is potentially important and believes its significance can only properly be considered by calling for evidence from the witnesses concerned. Reconvening public hearings is the most fair, just and transparent way of dealing with this matter.”

The reconvened Phase One sessions will take place on 9-10 July.

Contact:

Paul Rees, Head of Communications
Tel: 020 7972 1999
Fax: 020 7972 1981
Mobile: 07884 473 355
paul.rees@victoriaclimbie.org