Six Blackburn with Darwen council staff suspended in email probe (From Lancashire Telegraph)

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Six Blackburn with Darwen council staff suspended in email probe

9:10am Thursday 25th February 2010 in News Photograph of the Author Exclusive By Tom Moseley, Reporter

CONCERN: One of the less offensive pictures allegedly circulated by council staff

BLACKBURN with Darwen council has suspended six workers in its children’s department after they allegedly circulated an email containing a shocking image of a naked child.

A leading children’s charity said the claims were ‘disturbing’ and called for an example to be made of the staff if they are found guilty of breaching rules.

One photograph shows an otherwise naked youngster apparently covered in sanitary towels. His private parts are also covered.

Another image shows three young boys urinating, one of them naked.

The episode is being treated as a ‘child protection issue’.

Bosses at the council have launched an investigation after a complaint was made by other workers who found the pictures offensive.

They were circulated in a ‘joke’ email which contained pictures of young boys.

The images have been branded ‘totally inappropriate’ for staff working with vulnerable children.

The e-mail, titled “Why boys need mothers”, contains 12 pictures of children misbehaving.

"The images also include one boy swallowing a frog and another climbing into a fridge.

Opposition Labour leader Kate Hollern said that if the workers had sent the e-mails they should be sacked.

Claude Knights, director of children’s charity Kidscape, said: “Whatever the source of these pictures these are real children that have been abused.

“Images like these are degrading and each time they are viewed it is another level of degredation.

“The context of these suspensions is even more disturbing because these people are working in a field where they should know the impact of images like this.

“This is material that is not fit to be viewed and you would hope that all working in that department would have a level of awareness to understand that.

“It is a very disappointing and worrying episode.

“If they are found guilty then an example needs to be made.

"It is good to know that the local authority has acted quickly and is taking the issue seriously.”

Some staff believe the council has over-reacted to what was meant as a joke e-mail.

One town hall worker, who did not want to be named, said: “Staff are divided - and there’s a pretty even split.

"Some think it’s really bad, but others say there’s nothing to worry about.”

It is understood the staff, who are believed to work in children’s centres across the borough, were suspended as a precaution on Friday pending the investigation.

More than 700 people are employed by the council in children’s services.

Unison rep Gareth Roscoe said: “We are vigorously defending our members”. He would not comment further.

Coun Hollern, the leader of the opposition Labour group on the council, said she was shocked at the investigation.

She said: “Some of these images are totally inappropriate, particularly for staff who are there to protect children, and you wonder why anyone would want to send them on.

“I hope the council carries out a full investigation. If after the investigation staff are found to have breached the rules they should be sacked.”

According to the council’s “IT acceptable use policy”, staff are banned from “knowingly transmitting” jokes and chain letters.

The document says: “Emails must not contain indecent or obscene” material, or anything “likely to cause offence”.

Sajid Ali, Liberal Democrat councillor for the Bastwell ward, said any sending of such emails, if true, was “totally inappropriate”.

He said: “Sending images of that nature would be well out of order.

"The workers are there to do a job not send e-mails around of young children.

He said that it would be “despicable” if children’s services workers had sent images of this nature.

Graham Burgess, chief executive of Blackburn with Darwen Council, said: "A complaint has been made about use of the council's IT system.

"This is being looked into and has to remain a confidential matter. As such it would be inappropriate to comment further."

A spokesman for the police said: “The matter is being dealt with by the borough council as it is not a police matter.”

Rules on e-mails for council staff

BLACKBURN with Darwen Council has a set e-mail policy for its staff to follow.

According to the council, whose chief executive is Graham Burgess, any e-mail from its staff has the same legal status as a council letter, memo, or fax and, as a result, any sent or received are the property of the authority.

According to the council’s “IT acceptable use policy”, staff must not create, download, or knowingly transmit viruses, chain letters, or jokes, or material that infringes copyright.

The document also says: “E-mails must not contain indecent or obscene material, or anything likely to cause offence.”

They must also not e-mail any material which harrasses any other employee, or third party, on the basis of sex, race, religious beliefs, political beliefs, marital status or disability.

Users are also told not to send, or circulate, any material designed or likely to cause annoyance, inconvenience, or needless anxiety to any person.

Comments(38)

wackyracer says...
9:29am Thu 25 Feb 10

I'm not saying it was ok to do what they have done...but...when you work in this field, either childrens social services or with adults, you develop a sense of humour that helps you deal with the complex and and sometimes awful issues that you deal with on a daily basis. Anybody who writes a comment on this site that does not have any history of working in this area, please take this into consideration before you critacise a very very stressed and short staffed group of dedicated people that are saving lives. Thank You.