Woman facing 13 charges relating to 16 children
A SOCIAL worker involved in the care of murdered child Liam Fee has been described as “disorganised”, “chaotic” and “the most erratic person I have worked with” by her boss at a probe into her conduct.
Lesley Bate faces a succession of charges over her role as a social worker with Fife Council between December 2011 and August 2014.
Ms Bate, who has chosen not to appear before the Scottish Social Services Council conduct sub-committee, was a member of the Glenrothes Child Protection Team who managed the two-year-old’s case
Liam was murdered by his mother Rachel Fee and her civil partner Nyomi Fee at their home in Thornton, Fife, in March 2014.
One charge against Ms Bate is that she failed to follow up concerns raised by a childminder about a one-year-old boy, labelled FF in anonymised SSSC documents.
It alleges that despite the childminder raising concerns on January 15, 2013, “regarding bruising to the face” of the baby – and the next month that “he had a sore neck” – Ms Bate did not act.
During the murder trial of Rachel and Nyomi Fee, childminder Heather Farmer told the court she contacted the Scottish Childminding Association in January 2013 after he turned up with scratches and bruises to his face.
In a separate incident, she raised concerns about the toddler’s neck after he was dropped off at her home on February 18, 2013.
The hearing yesterday was told that Ms Bate’s manager following Liam’s death had “serious questions about her assessment of risk”.
Ms Bate faces a total of 13 charges relating to 16 children, including several allegations that she “failed to take necessary steps to minimise actual or potential risk of harm” for those children.
The hearing was told that in the months following Liam’s death Ms Bate had been under a disciplinary investigation and had been off sick. When she returned she was moved to the Children and Families Team based in Dunfermline.
Her manager there, James Ross, told the hearing how he had tried to “help and support” Ms Bate on her return, but that her work had been “poor”.
She was given a case to handle in which a father of an unborn child had been charged with 21 offences of domestic and sexual violence against women.
However, Ms Bate neglected to mention that in a report going before a Initial Child Protection Case Conference.
In another case involving concerns of neglect over children the hearing was told she failed to undertake planned weekly visits with the express aim of “keeping children safe”, claiming she had simply “forgot”.
And in another she dropped a letter outside her office building containing “the most sensitive information possible” about children she was working with, a document later found in the street by a neighbour.
Mr Ross said: “There had been a lengthy investigation into Lesley’s work before she came to my team.
“That had concluded she be given an opportunity to practise elsewhere in the service.
“She was probably the most erratic person I have worked with.
“She was fine when there was no work to be undertaken, but the minute anything was required she failed to undertake it.
“She absolutely could not understand risk at that point and I had a real concern about her visiting families and drawing a conclusion about what the information was telling her.
“She was very disorganised and presented chaotically. I constantly tidied up for her because I wanted the children to be safe.”
The hearing was told that Ms Bate has “relinquished” her registration as a social worker with the SSSC. However, she does not admit any of the charges against her.
One of her managers, Karen Pedder, is to give evidence later this week. She told the Liam Fee murder trial that the youngster had “fallen off the radar” of social work staff in the months leading up to his death.
The hearing continues and is expected to run until Friday.
Rachel Fee, 31, and Nyomi Fee, 29, were convicted of the murder of Liam and neglect of two other children earlier this year at the High Court in Livingston and jailed for life.
‘‘ She absolutely could not understand risk . . . I had a real concern about her visiting families and drawing a conclusion