40,000 Birmingham kids are at risk of violence at home

Nov 27 2009 by Paul Dale, Birmingham Mail

FORTY thousand children in Birmingham live in households where violence is commonplace, a shock council report revealed today.

Just under one in five children in the city live in fear of abusive relationships at home, or are victims of domestic violence.

They are in danger of suffering permanent psychological damage, it warned.

The alarming figures highlight the “shocking scale” of domestic abuse in Birmingham, according to Coun Margaret Sutton, who has led a scrutiny inquiry into the problem.

And Coun Les Lawrence, cabinet member for children, young people and families, said he would do “everything in my power” to support the youngsters at risk.

Domestic incidents account for 22 per cent of all recorded violent crime in the West Midlands.

In a single year social workers received 14,000 urgent requests, most of them from the police, to come to the rescue of youngsters at risk.

Coun Sutton (Con, Kings Norton) said children living in households with a violent parent required significant support to stay safe.

But the inquiry identified poor co-operation between the council, police and public agencies and a “lack of clear accountability” for supporting child victims.

The council-led Birmingham Safeguarding Children Board, the body responsible for protecting youngsters, has no specialist in domestic violence on its executive, it revealed.

And the council has only one officer responsible for co-ordinating action against domestic violence, and she does not focus solely on children.

Coun Sutton warned that the consequences of witnessing domestic abuse would stay with children throughout their lives.

“The city council needs to provide both adequate resources and leadership to meet the challenge of providing city-wide co-ordination in order to respond adequately to the needs of children and young people who experience and witness domestic abuse,” she said.

“Failure to do this risks young people entering exploitative and abusive relationships of their own and perpetuating the cycle of abuse in future generations.”

Coun Lawrence, said: “Tackling domestic abuse and supporting victims is challenging as it requires a lot of agencies to work together.

“However, I am committed to doing everything in my power to ensure we provide the best possible support to the young victims of domestic abuse.”