THE man in charge of Swansea Council's social services department has denied any attempt to cover up details of a serious case review into the death of a city teenager.

Last month, Swansea Council and the South Wales Police made public apologies for failings in the care given to three 16 year olds, after the details of Serious Case Reviews into the deaths of Kyle Bates, Carly Townsend and Chloe Davies were released.

Reviews

The reports, released on March 18, revealed how Kyle never went to secondary school, how "the serious impact of chronic failure to receive education was not recognised" and how he lived in a world of crime, alcohol and drugs.

The report concerning Carly revealed how she beat drugs at a detention centre only to go back to her heroin-using family — she overdosed on the drug just days later.

Social services were also criticised for failing to take onboard the unhappiness and self-harm of Chloe, who eventually hanged herself.

However, the news that some paragraphs from the 16-page draft review into the death of Kyle were deleted from the final published version has lead to accusations the Swansea Safeguarding Children's Board watered down the information it released.

Last night, councillors attended an extraordinary council meeting, held for members to discuss the tragic cases.

Labour group leader David Phillips raised the issue of deleted paragraphs.

He said the differences between the draft copy and the published executive summary into the death of Kyle Bates created "differences in emphasis and difference in perception."

However, the council's director for social services, Chris Maggs, who chaired the Swansea Safeguarding Children Board, said the published report documented the department's failings.

He said: "I don't believe anybody can be left with any other impression that there was a failing of the service at the time.

"It is very important to recognise that the report as it was produced is from another report hundreds of pages long. You have to make it shorter."

Failings

Mr Maggs was also pressed on the matter by councillor Roger Smith, who said: "Sections of the report were removed. I note that it has not been denied. Why were they removed? Who authorised the purification and sanitisation of this report?"

Mr Maggs said: "I do not believe the report was sanitised.

"Every member of the board was asked to sign off on the report."

Councillor Phillips also raised the issue of a lack of action against social workers involved in the cases.

He said: "No disciplinary action has been taken against any of the people who significantly failed these children.

"None of the staff involved here work at the authority anymore. One is still in child care.

"The most we have been able to do is make a phone call to the current employer."

Conservative group leader Rene Kinzett asked what lessons had been learned about particular failings in the three cases.

In particular, he asked: "What lessons have been learned in the case (of Carly) where the child is under the influence of destructive and irresponsible, for want of a better word, guardians?"

Steve Walker, head of child and family services, said Carly was placed on the Child Protection Register at birth in 1990, but was not taken into care until 1997. He said: "I am very clear that we have made changes . . . that would not have failed her in that way now."

Councillor Kinzett said he was concerned about the way referrals to agencies were dealt with in relation to Kyle.

He said: "All three children were at significant risk of harm throughout their lives, and it is right the authority has said we acted in a way that failed them in the worst way."

Identified

Speaking after the meeting, Councillor Phillips said: "This is about confidence that we have identified what went wrong and we know what we need to do to put it right. I am not sure these reports provide that confidence.

"It is also important the public have confidence in the system as well, and that has not been helped by the considerable delay in publication, by the removal of harder hitting passages and by the fact the board is chaired by the director of social service."