The Dame may have had reservations about the late Shireen Ritchie, but she would be shocked by the incompetent way Cllr E Campbell was handling the chaos of the new Special Needs Transport contracts.
This letter from an anxious parent backs up the list of concerns detailed by Cllr Blakeman.
 |
| EMPTY HEAD CAMPBELL |
Time the very sensible Paget-Brown booted this liability out his Cabinet....for the sake of the vulnerable children
The woman is a menace!
Dear Dame
I don't think I have ever used the word 'aghast' before but it really does describe my reaction to the chaos caused this week by the Special Needs Transport new contractors.
The fact that one bus arrived to collect a child, only to realise that they had already filled the bus and there were no spare seats, would be funny if it didn't involve the most vulnerable people in the whole Tri-Borough area: namely children with special needs.
My own experience of the shambles was relatively benign, which was that no one returned any phone calls; no one knew which firm was supposed to collect my son and no one had the slightest knowledge on how to manage our specific needs.
This meant that we were without transport for a total of 3 days, in which time, the firm whom were originally supposed to be providing our transport, Radio Taxis, decided that they were unable and we were assigned to HATs.
HATs did call and reassured me that they would be able to keep my son safe and when they arrived for the first time-3 days late-I was content to leave my son in their care, they even knew where they were going (although didn't know how to get there).
I understand that absolutely every single family was affected negatively in some way, the shambles in RBKC was universal.
Some of the stories I heard from other families were both frightening and scary, especially when you consider that many of these children are prone to severe fitting, seizures or whom are seriously autistic - children being kept on buses for up to 4hrs, buses arriving without the correct harnesses, parents not been given any contact details nor ID, children being taken to the wrong addresses, unsuitable vehicles, ill tempered drivers (whom were required to accept liability for the first £750 of damage to the bus), waiting for over 3hrs for buses to arrive and escorts with no training in how to handle their passengers. It really is beyond belief that such vulnerable people can be treated with such a reckless attitude.
The only time I can ever recall a failure of such magnitude is the G4S Olympic failure, which was branded a "humiliating failure" by MPs. To date the only humiliation experienced in the Tri-Borough area is to the children with special needs and not those responsible. No explanation has been offered and certainly no apology. It is hard to imagine that those responsible have the slightest understanding, or even care, for the anguish that their incompetence has caused. It also means that the new special needs transport providers have started relationships on a very very poor basis which may never recover. Whilst it will be the children whom suffer, if trust is not restored, it will also impair the efficient running of service... after all this is all done in the name of efficiency isn't it?
Ben
The fact that one bus arrived to collect a child, only to realise that they had already filled the bus and there were no spare seats, would be funny if it didn't involve the most vulnerable people in the whole Tri-Borough area: namely children with special needs.
My own experience of the shambles was relatively benign, which was that no one returned any phone calls; no one knew which firm was supposed to collect my son and no one had the slightest knowledge on how to manage our specific needs.
This meant that we were without transport for a total of 3 days, in which time, the firm whom were originally supposed to be providing our transport, Radio Taxis, decided that they were unable and we were assigned to HATs.
HATs did call and reassured me that they would be able to keep my son safe and when they arrived for the first time-3 days late-I was content to leave my son in their care, they even knew where they were going (although didn't know how to get there).
I understand that absolutely every single family was affected negatively in some way, the shambles in RBKC was universal.
Some of the stories I heard from other families were both frightening and scary, especially when you consider that many of these children are prone to severe fitting, seizures or whom are seriously autistic - children being kept on buses for up to 4hrs, buses arriving without the correct harnesses, parents not been given any contact details nor ID, children being taken to the wrong addresses, unsuitable vehicles, ill tempered drivers (whom were required to accept liability for the first £750 of damage to the bus), waiting for over 3hrs for buses to arrive and escorts with no training in how to handle their passengers. It really is beyond belief that such vulnerable people can be treated with such a reckless attitude.
The only time I can ever recall a failure of such magnitude is the G4S Olympic failure, which was branded a "humiliating failure" by MPs. To date the only humiliation experienced in the Tri-Borough area is to the children with special needs and not those responsible. No explanation has been offered and certainly no apology. It is hard to imagine that those responsible have the slightest understanding, or even care, for the anguish that their incompetence has caused. It also means that the new special needs transport providers have started relationships on a very very poor basis which may never recover. Whilst it will be the children whom suffer, if trust is not restored, it will also impair the efficient running of service... after all this is all done in the name of efficiency isn't it?
Ben
 |
Click here to Reply, Reply to all or Forward
|
While E. Campbell flutters about trying to blame Nick Paget-Brown and Nicholas Holgate for the passenger transport debacle, the real author of the chaos Andrew Christie, Tri-borough head of everything connected to children and families (previously Hammersmith & Fulham), was on holiday the week the disaster commenced. Since his return he has delegated everything connected to it to a hapless underling, Ros Morris, no doubt to keep his hands clean in case Tri-borough nominate him for an honour from Her Majesty. And no, the changes were not introduced in the interests of efficiency, but just to save money.
ReplyDeleteChristie sounds like a Muffin. Not the sort of person that Kensington deserves. Hammersmith was and always will be Hammersmith. Third rate spot for third rate people.
DeleteWelcome to the real world. A new operator and start up problems. And parents who need to understand that local Government is not a bottomless pit of money for doing this and doing that in a Rolls Royce way. The country is going bust because of all this Government spending and we need to cut back. It means that we all need to take more responsibility for running our lives and the lives of our families. And rely less on the nanny state.
ReplyDeleteThe Dame will never normally descend to engaging with idiots, but on this occasion she feels obliged to remind the idiotic 09:51 that residents pay taxes for the provision of basic services....and rightly demand that they are delivered cost effectively and efficiently.This is a basic service....
Delete09:51 is doubtless one of Cockells' sycophantic followers so let the Dame remind him of something. He claims that local government is not a bottomless pit: perhaps he should transmit this message to Cockell. Whilst leader Cockell saw no issue in spending £100 million on a school that should have cost £35 million; £30 million on Exhibitionist Rd which costs £250k a year to clean; £1million a year on Opera Holland Park and who blew £1 million on Chelsea Care.
And besides all that claimed £120,000 a year from his double jobbing. We won't even go into his lavish expenses. Maybe, that accounts for the 'going bust' element of his comment! Now, go away 09:51 and contemplate on your stupidity
Well said Dame....as usual a muscular response to an idiot!
DeleteYou are clearly ignorant of what life or non life consists of raising a disabled child. In fact disabled children and people contribute heavily back into the state by employing people to care for them. Parents devote their lives to their child. The previous transport was not a rolls Royce service it met children's
Deleteneeds properly and cost effectively. It was a wise use of money which the councillors who are still in power bleated on about how wonderful they were at doing this. But now because of the tri borough debacle are they saying they were incompetent after all? The council cannot have it both ways, the local electorate did not vote for this tri borough, it did not vote to have valuable services to vulnerable people turned into hell for these people. No one takes their responsibilities more seriously than a parent of a disabled child. This chaos has been caused by idiots that have come from Hammersmith and Fulham who have no clue of what needs to be in place for children with such complicated disabilities. They should be sacked for failing in their duty of care to these children and their families and for bringing the council into disrepute. You on the other hand should return back to the rock which you crept from under.
The Managing Director of G4S got fired for incompetence. Sounds like Christie deserves the bullet too.
ReplyDeleteThese were the words of Padgett brown on his election as leader. "I want us to remain a borough which understands that its first responsibility is to support the truly vulnerable. That means top quality care, early intervention and ensuring that we employ the best people to improve the quality of lives." It is now clear that this was just bullshit.
ReplyDeleteWhat is this council waiting for,something physically to happen to a disabled child, before they remedy this nightmare?
ReplyDeleteTragic and utterly disgraceful. The bi-tri-experiment is a disgrace. Every K & C council department is in chaos. Experienced K & C officers have been replaced by H & F incompetents, or worse. K & C officers are warned not to discuss council matters with our elected members, without specific permission from their new H & F masters. This terrible story highlights the damage now being done to K & C public services. It's high time NPB announced an immediate divorce.
ReplyDeleteThis tri/bi is literally the dismantling of good services for local people. Officers from H&F and Westminster are experts in bull. That can be seen with closer observation of how each of these boroughs were managed. Paperwork paperwork and low grade services. The officers have built their own castle with large salaries, whilst the councillors sit and watch and believe the sales pitches they are being fed. This example of tri borough services for vulnerable children is appalling, and an example that these officers have no expertise in operating such a service for this particular group of children. so far the council have been lucky in that no child has been physically hurt, or lost. NPB needs to do the honourable thing for Kensington and Chelsea residents, withdraw from this chaos.
ReplyDeleteThe Tri Borough has failed the residents of Kensington, and is destroying the high standards Kensington has worked so hard to achieve. Kensington officers have been replaced by Hammersmith incompetents and many councillors are too stupid to see that they are being screwed.
ReplyDelete