My Story
My children have been placed in foster homes by Cornwall Council. Two of them now need to be moved — but there are no suitable placements available in Cornwall, especially for one child who has special educational needs (SEN), and another who is almost 16 years old. They could be sent anywhere in the country, far from their home, their family, and everything familiar.
Meanwhile, I have complied with every assessment, every demand. Every hoop they place in front of me, I jump through — only for a new one to appear. I have evidence that disproves many of the claims made against me, yet I’m still blamed. Reunification isn’t even being considered.
Why, when I’ve done everything asked of me, are they not returning my children — especially when there are no placements left for them here?
A System That Keeps Moving the Goalposts
It feels like a game I can’t win — not because I’m unfit, but because the rules keep changing. Social workers don’t provide clear pathways to reunification. When you challenge their claims or provide evidence to the contrary, the target simply moves.
It doesn’t feel like they’re trying to help. It feels like they’re trying to control.
What makes it harder to swallow is that this system already failed me once.
I’ve been known to social services since I was 12 months old, first in Somerset, then in Cornwall from the age of 11. They were aware that my mother was a Schedule One offender — a label given to individuals who posed a known risk to children — and that she was living with a convicted paedophile. They came in and out of my life. They knew. And they did nothing. They didn’t remove me. They didn’t protect me.
Now, years later, the very same system that refused to save me is telling me I’m not good enough to be a parent. No matter how much I prove, no matter what I show them — they still say no.
Cornwall Council’s Track Record: A History of Failing Families
This isn’t just my story. What’s happening to me is happening to many families across Cornwall. And the numbers back it up.
The Facts:
- As of March 2024, there were 619 children in care in Cornwall — the highest number ever recorded since data collection began in 2009. Source: Cornish Times
- 233 of those children (38%) were placed over 20 miles from home, isolating them from their support networks.
- Since 2019, Cornwall has seen:
- A 47% increase in child welfare referrals
- A 104% rise in child protection enquiries
- A 34% rise in child-in-need assessments
- Source: The Mouth
- In 2023–2024, the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman upheld 77% of complaints against Cornwall Council — a sign of serious issues with how the authority is operating. Source: LGO Performance
These aren’t just numbers — they’re the evidence of a system under pressure and out of control.
These are the same systems and mindsets now judging me. The same agencies that once failed to protect me are now deciding I am not fit to be a parent — despite doing everything asked of me.
Where is the accountability? Where is the justice?
The Postcode Lottery: Your Outcome Depends on Where You Live
What’s perhaps most terrifying is that if I lived in another county, the outcome might be entirely different.
Every local authority in the UK is supposed to follow the same laws — but in practice, how those laws are interpreted and applied varies widely from place to place.
This is what’s known as the postcode lottery of child protection.
A 2020 report by the Children’s Commissioner found that the same child could be assessed completely differently in two different local authorities. Ofsted and the Family Rights Group have also raised concerns about inconsistent decision-making across councils.
What one council sees as a reason to remove a child, another might see as a situation where support — not separation — is the answer.
This is not justice. It’s geography.
What Needs to Change
This is not about one mistake, one bad case, or one social worker. It’s about a culture that treats families with suspicion, not support. A structure that imposes impossible expectations and punishes people even after they’ve met every requirement.
- Cornwall Council must be held accountable. We need:
Transparency: Clear, consistent pathways to reunification. - Support over suspicion: Parents who meet the mark should not be punished for past trauma.
- Proper oversight: Independent review of long-standing care cases.
- Urgent foster care reform: Children shouldn’t be sent across the country because the local authority can’t manage its own placements.
- An apology and acknowledgment for the children they didn’t save — like me — and the families they’re now breaking.
In Closing
I was failed by this system as a child. And now, that same system is trying to take away my chance to be the parent I never had.
I have done everything they asked. And still, it’s not enough. Not because of who I am — but because of who they’ve decided I’ll always be.
This is my story. But it’s not just mine.
If you are going through this too — speak up. Tell your truth. Push back. Document everything. File complaints. Demand answers. You are not alone.
And Cornwall Council — the world is watching now.
thegirlspeaks.uk 