How Could You? Hall of Shame-UK-Danielle McKinney case

This will be an archive of heinous actions by those involved in child welfare, foster care and adoption. We forewarn you that these are deeply disturbing stories that may involve sex abuse, murder, kidnapping and other horrendous actions.

From Birmingham.UK, Danielle McKinney “has told how she was sent to 39 different placements and raped three times before the age of 16.”

“Danielle McKinney, who is studying for a degree in child protection, lifts the lid on her years in care, and the grooming and sexual abuse which was rife.

And, speaking on BBC West Midlands documentary A Dangerous Place To Be A Kid? tonight, she is doubtful that the situation has improved for those being looked after by Birmingham City Council.

The hard-hitting interview comes at a time when the council is one-year through a three-year improvement plan to turn around the failing child protection service.

In 2013 the department was branded a ‘national disgrace’. There had been a series of preventable child deaths including the notorious cases of Khyra Ishaq and Keanu Williams – both killed at the hands of their parents despite being known to social workers. An extra £30 million has been ploughed in to the service and Government troubleshooter Lord Norman Warner was brought in to oversee improvement. His report is awaiting publication.

Danielle, now in her 20s, was taken into care aged 11 after school teachers saw belt lashes on her back when she was getting changed for PE. Over the next five years she was given 39 different placements.

“When I was 11 I already had a guy try to rape me in the children’s home, but that didn’t work. When I was 13 I ran away and then got tricked into going to this flat and I got locked in. Then he started calling people and they kept me there for hours and I got gang raped. They had me in a cupboard and wouldn’t let me go.

“I don’t think any of us ever felt safe. Half of us ran away because it was safer to run away than to be in the home sometimes.”

And she believes children are still suffering, despite efforts to turn the service around.

“Children are still going through the same traumas, the same dangers, the same experiences as we did ten years ago, nothing has changed,” she tells the programme. “Stop blaming the child for your mistakes. Take some responsibility for failing all these children and make a real difference. Sort the staff out, sort the emotional support out.”

“I want children in care to understand that if you get through the care system you can handle anything that life throws at you. To understand that the strength that you are going to get from this is going to be so immense that you can handle anything and that’s what makes you the soldiers of this world.”

As a result of meeting Danielle, Birmingham City Council’s director of children’s services Peter Hay has offered to fund her to study for a degree to get a job helping children in care.

He accepts her criticism and agrees that in the past children were ignored. He said: “One of the things we’ve got to learn from that and ensure we keep in the debate about Child Sexual Exploitation, is that it doesn’t become too difficult for us as adults to talk about and to listen and hear from those at risk or being sexually exploited.”

Since he took over as director in 2013 there has been work to stabilise the management, fill social worker vacancies, reduce workloads and forge closer links with police, health services, schools and nurseries to identify and help those at risk. But Mr Hay recognises there remains much to do.”

 

I was sent to 39 different homes and raped three times before I was 16[Birmingham Mail 7/13/15 by Neil Elkes]

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