ten000hzlegend's Journal: RACHEL AND REBECCA

(1) - The Children Act, introduced in 1989 enables the state to initially consult with children that may be at risk from elders and make judgements regarding their well-being and safety in a home environment

The following regulations make up the act

- A child's future welfare is the sole consideration of any action undertaken
- Parental responsibility supersedes the concept of rights to a child
- A child has the decision to disassociate from their birth parents at any time
- The state requires to identify children in risk
- The state also has responsibilities in ensuring a child's safety

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The Child Protection Act 1999 takes into consideration who is working with children, either in a social setting or school and whether they are suitable, for instance if they have previous convictions and charges regarding children or they are unable to work alongside children in fear of their well-being

The act comprises of four main stages

- That a legal list of people proved unsuitable to work with children remain on there indefinitely as they could prove a hazard to children
- That current care workers are checked alongside the Child Protection Act list to see if they hold previous charges of any kind
- When children are put into care, the responsible organisation involved obtains criminal checks without delay to ensure long-term care can be maintained
- Anyone found to hold previous convictions is immediately disclosed as not to endanger the welfare of children

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(2) - A children's psychologist could be linked with both sisters to help them come to terms and deal mentally with the neglect and abuse they received, since it would have long serving memories, the psychologist must be aware of their past history with their parents and how the overall relationship with them became more and more negative as time went on, Rachel only talks about the days leading to the attack, therefore the psychologist must try to obtain information that could be used in the criminal charges without causing further disruption to their emotional well-being

A physiotherapist, after initial treatment and recuperation periods, will be needed to guide the sisters into normal health again, because they are both five years old, their physical development must be brought back to normal as soon as possible otherwise later degradation and stunted growth could occur, the physiotherapist must also outline a sensible eating and diet plan

Social workers that could work alongside Rachel and Rebecca for periods are essential to help the children become re-accustomed to a home environment, whether or not the children have been in normal surroundings, the social worker can also introduce them to household safety i.e cookers and provide them with the necessary "home sense" when and if they are relocated to a new family and environment

A long-term councillor, after Rachel and Rebecca are settled and in a secure environment, may be needed to help them relieve the emotional burden that is presently in place, their neglect must not become a template of their views on how adults and carers treat them and their physical abuse cannot be repeated, so therefore the councillor must help them in a sense, re-evaluate their views on home life and also re-integrate them with friends in school and locally where they reside as it appeared they had not been outside playing and socialising for some length of time

The police, along with a children's psychologist will be on hand to help Rachel and Rebecca bring forward any information they can to shed light on the overall neglect that had occurred

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(3) - While the sisters are in hospital, health and oral hygiene checks can begin to ensure they are physically stable and during their hospital stay, a short-term care plan must be set up to provide them with the necessary diets and physical recuperation periods to ensure a full return to health

The patients charter will allow Rachel And Rebecca some freedom in how their treatment progresses, whether or not they require psychiatric care as well as more long-term counselling regarding their previous abuse. Their discharge from hospital will allow them to enter into an educational support program designed to provide abilities to catch up with their current year in school, teachers and tutors supervising their progress in school must be made aware of their previous experiences

Continuous care after hospital must be maintained until a suitable foster family is found, this includes social workers checking regularly with their progress, if they are finding associating themselves with others difficult and their initial refusal to either remain silent or talk only about the attack becomes a setback to become stable again, these factors must become immediately aware to the workers and must be solved during the discharge, pre-relocation stage

A community nursing officer can also alongside social workers, help the children in detailing how to look after themselves i.e hygiene and basic dietary requirements on a long-term basis, this includes a long-term care plan to be set up once relocation has been found

The long-term care plan will be set up with the foster family, it includes the past history of Rachel and Rebecca, special requirements if needed and can accommodate future changes in their recovery, especially mentally