The world was shocked to hear the story seven-year-old Khyra Ishaq who recently starved to death while under her own mother’s care.  The young girl was taken from school and kept at home where she and her siblings were refused adequate food and allegedly beaten with blunt objects.

Khyra weighed just 2st 9lb (16.5kg) when she was found severely emaciated at a house in Handsworth in 2008.  She was pronounced dead when she was taken to the children’s hospital in Birmingham.

This has prompted questions about the efficacy of the current social services that had seen Khyra just months before and failed to take action, or even suggest she was at risk.  Also, may want to know how a bright student can be pulled from school without further investigation taking place.

The NSPCC insists that until they can speak with children without their parent or guardian present, these situation will continue.  They claim that the presence of the alleged abusers intimidates the victims and conceals the truth of the situation for fear of negative repercussions.

Chris Cloke from the NSPCC said that abusers would “go to great lengths to conceal how the child has been treated, to cover bruises to conceal what is going on”.  In order to gain a clear picture of what is happening, the NSPCC insists that the law require children to speak with workers alone.  If the law is in place social workers could state that legally, they are required to see the child alone for an interview.

This change would hopefully serve to prevent future cases such as Khyra’s, who was previously seen by social workers in her mother’s presence. However, critics claim that this is too large a change to protocol.

“A lot of the problems are about social workers having the confidence to use their skills and the confidence they will get the backing form other services” claims Hilton Dawson, chief executive of the British Association of Social Workers.  Helga Pile of Unison, which represents many social workers, added her concern when she said she feared the proposal could be “a blunt instrument and be too heavy-handed.”

Sadly, it is too late for Khyra.  Her mother Angela Gordon admitted to manslaughter and has been sentenced to 15 years while her stepfather Junaid Abuhamza was also found guilty of manslaughter and has been jailed indefinitely.

“It is not right to say that these children suffered from neglect,” the judge said.

“Neglect is an inadequate and inappropriate description of the way they were treated.

“Rather, they were subjected to a domestic regime of punishment which was chilling in its harshness and cruelty.

A serious case review into Khyra’s death by the Birmingham Safeguarding Children Board is under way, while the debate surrounding the law continues.

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