A BELEAGURED children’s services boss will be offered one least chance to resign or will be sacked, the M.E.N. can reveal.
Jill Baker – the woman in charge of children’s services in Salford – had been suspended from her £105,000 post since early September after a damning report into the death of a toddler. She had been offered a lump sum of £85,000 plus an annual pension of £27,000 to resign but refused the offer.
Now a disciplinary panel, including five councillors, has decided to give her one more chance to walk after a four-day hearing which scrutinized her performance as strategic director of children’s services with responsibility for education and children’s social services.
It’s understood she will be officially told of the decision later this week. If she refuses the offer she still has the right to appeal and the option to take the council to an employment tribunal.
The trigger for her suspension was Mrs Baker telling the M.E.N. and other media that no one would be disciplined after the death of Demi Leigh Mahon. This angered council leader, John Merry, and council chief executive, Barbara Spicer.
Demi, aged two, was murdered last year after being let down 12 times by social workers in Salford. They had been warned five times by police, five times by neighbours, and twice by the child’s grandmother about Demi’s chaotic domestic life – raised by a mother who was on drugs and could not cope.
Demi, two, was the victim of a brutal attack by teenager Karl McCluney, 15, who had been left to look after her.
Police had alerted the council at least five times over two years with concerns over incidents involving Demi, her mother, or both.
Social services received a further five alerts from neighbours who reported Demi’s mother was too drunk or high on drugs to properly care for her child. And Demi’s own grandmother twice contacted Salford council to say she was worried about Demi’s welfare.
Ms Spicer, ordered a review of Mrs Baker’s decision not to discipline anyone and it resulted in Mrs Baker herself being suspended.
Tweet
Comments
Login or Register to comment
Thank goodness for that. As someone who works for Salford LEA can I say it's about time! Perhaps now some of our concerns may be taken further in future.
Why is this person being offered a financial deal to leave if she is guilty of some form of "misconduct". Is this case different to the Sharon Shoesmith situation in London who was sacked without compensation?
Manxmike
Why is this person being offered a significant financial deal to leave if she is guilty of "misconduct" . Is this case any different to the Sharon Shoesmith situation in London where she was dismissed without compensation.
Manxmike
I wouldn't want to come back as a dog in Wythenshawe or social worker in Salford
Have I got the wrong impression here? I am sure I read that she was from an education background
and was given childrens social services in cost cutting job changes, at first against her wishes. In other words she was never the right person for the job and her defence is why blame me. I have assumed councillors and others were just as guilty of negligence and ignorance. Am I missing something?
Another one with no shame? Not her fault? Doesn't mind taking the salary though, does she?
£27g's will buy you 13500 lucky bags.
If I was guilty of misconduct I would just be fired with no financial rewards!!!! she is responsible she was the boss!!!!
The councillors responsible for these "services" should go too. But then, they consider themselves responsible for nothing and to no one.
Social service personel are the scum of the earth generally. They claim to work on a platform of "supporting families" but through bitter experience I can assure you they are nothing more than parasites sucking away hard earned taxpayers cash. This woman is yet another example of the insensitive, disrespectful way that they treat the general public. I sometimes think that they believe we are there for their benefit and not the opposite way around.
I hope this woman persues her claim so she can have every part of her life pulled apart and scrutinised in the same way they do to hard working families and we will see what she and her department are really like - a complete disaster. Hopefully, if there is enough evidence, lets hope she gets charged with deriliction of duty and sent to prison. As I said earlier, scum of the earth.
Delighted with this decision. What goes around comes around. Praise the lord!
Why should she be given a chance, she's done wrong, sack her with no finacial gain, welcome to the real world.
Definitely no financial gain! Good riddance!
Why are her bosses not being looked into? When she was just in charge of Education for Salford she did a fantastic job then they decided to lump Social Services on her which was already in chaos. The hidden agenda would seem to be that they (her bosses) don't want the public to know what has been going on. If she takes them to a tribunal maybe some of those things that they don't want us to know will be brought out into the open.
The woman was handed the poisoned apple when they merged Education and Social Services. Who will they give her job to if she does leave/get sacked? Someone who will toe the party line and who will do the cost cutting exercise that the council wants?
There is a lot more to this than meets the eye in my opinion.
And while all this is going on the staff in Children's services are left to deal with even more chaos. Typical Salford Council cock up!
Thank You Dunnie & City forever - you have hit the nail right on the head!
Its not Jill Baker that should be walking, its Cllrs Warmisham, Merry and Chief Exec Spicer who should go, as well as hang their heads in shame at their own hypocrisy.
All three have been eager to hang out Ms Baker to dry, whilst attempting to protect their own political rear ends. It was they that presided over the shambles that was and is Salford social services, long before it was ever dumped on Jill Bakers desk.
Now all them are in even greater turmoil, having collectively spat out their dummies over the adjudicators decision regarding St Georges High School. All high school rebuilds and refurbishments cancelled indefinitely, because the cabinet are sulking! So much for the young people of Salford!
One thing is certain; the next director will be Spicer's, Merry's and Warmisham's intellectually limited puppet - brought in to slash front line services, whilst toeing the party line. It will be the children of this borough which ultimately suffer.
I dearly hope Ms Baker takes them all to a very public and very messy tribunal! Publish and be dammed!!
This is an obscene misuse of OUR money with the payoff and pension! If she screwed up,she should be sacked with one months salary at the most! Why pay out for incompetence,wouldn't happen in the private sector. She is lucky she wasn't prosecuted
Perhaps she was trying to defend her staff.
Why give her the choice? Just sack her.
Jill is not the one to blame here. Salford is a failing council that successfully hides (most of) its failures from the regulators. Councillors are out of control often ordering the most crass and idiotic actions without thinking through the consequences. The Chief Exec has done a fine job with Media City but has taken her eyes off the other balls. Jill is the subject of a witch hunt. Pure and simple.
If Salford have leaked that they offered Jill the opportunity to take early retirement / resign, it probably means that they do not think they have enough evidence to sack her. Witch hunt.
warmisham wrong again he should be sacked
"She had been offered a lump sum of £85,000 plus an annual pension of £27,000"
Heck. Hope you Labour voters are happy with what your elected representatives are up to; if not get them out at the nex opportunity.