DOCS ignored child with 15-year-old live-in boyfriend

[Vinyl]

Quote:

A 12-YEAR-OLD girl who was allowed to live with her 15-year-old boyfriend despite her father's pleas to DOCS is set to become one of the state's youngest mothers. The girl had shared a bed with the father of the unborn child from the age of 11 after her mother allowed him to move into their home. But although her father, who is separated from the mother, repeatedly pleaded with staff at the Department of Community Services helpline they did nothing about the situation. Police said they were also unable to intervene because both children were under the age of consent. If the boy was 18 police would have immediately begun a criminal investigation. When the girl's father took custody of her in March, he discovered she was pregnant. She is about halfway through her pregnancy. He is outraged that it took the shock news his child was to be a mother for government agencies to finally take notice. The department admitted it failed to act earlier because staff were working on more urgent cases. The father told his local member, Dubbo MP Dawn Fardell, that staff from DOCS and the Departments of Health and Education were now clamouring to help the child. "He came to me. The police said, 'Our hands are tied'," Ms Fardell said yesterday. "The father said to me it looks like he and his partner will raise the baby, they are happy to do so. "All the agencies have come in now and there were different options for her, it is a child having a child. "We need to surely look at what we can do. Someone needs to be accountable for this, we are accountable to society for allowing this to happen." Senior police said because the children were both under the age of consent and the girl failed to make a complaint of sexual abuse when she was interviewed, they were unable to act after the girl's father came to them on March 31. Sad details of the girl's life emerged in Parliament earlier this month. Her mother was placed in a mental health unit in March and when her father took over his daughter's care and went to police to report the pregnancy, she ran away. The girl has since returned to her father. This morning Community Services Minister Linda Burney has admitted major mistakes were made by her department in this case. The girl was ignored by DOCS because "he system was stretched", he says. There was no intervention by DOS, despite pleas from the girl's father for help, Mrs Burney said. "It's a disturbing case. It is true in my view that DoCS should have intervened more strenuously than what they did. "I'm of the view, as is the department, that there should have been more strident intervention than happened. "The father did contact community services in early March and there was some investigation but clearly not enough was done and I want to acknowledge that." The minister's comment come after DOCS admitted last night it had received the father's pleas for help. "The NSW Department of Community Services has been working with a pregnant 12-year-old girl and her family," a spokeswoman said last night. "DOCS had received reports about this girl previously. Because of more urgent cases, the department took some action to investigate this case, but acknowledges more intensive casework could have been done." The girl will be offered ongoing counselling, parenting advice and educational services, DOCS said. Since 2000, the state's youngest mother was just 11 and fewer than six 12-year-olds have given birth, the NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages said yesterday.

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[Blondee178]

I blame the mother! I can't imagine letting an 11 year old have a boyfirend let alone live with him. That is such a shame.

[sweetdreamer16]

omg this is all the mothers fault!! =( so sad that this poor girls life will never be the same

[BagAngel]

I cannot imagine a mother allowing a live in boyfriend for that child & where were his parents? Tragic!

[Swtest2Lips]

And the mother is in a mental hospital? ~sigh~

[bagaholic85]

i dont know how much blame can be put on the mother. yes the father tried to do something once he found out, but he shouldve known earlier! he only "discovered' she was pregnant in march? obviously if the mother wound up in a mental health institution, there must have been fairly clear warning signs leading up to it.

this poor girl's life is forever changed because she went unnoticed by the authorities and her own father. what a shame

[dreamdoll]

How could the mother allow this? I cannot imagine!

[Megs]

Really, this is shocking. I 'knew' what sex was at that age but I was SO far from that, like so entirely far. And yes, bad parenting is to blame for these two living together. That is sad actually.

[Charlie]

^^ I agree. Very sad indeed.

[gacats]

This is tragic, and unbelieveable.......

[alely]

Originally Posted by bagaholic85

i dont know how much blame can be put on the mother. yes the father tried to do something once he found out, but he shouldve known earlier! he only "discovered' she was pregnant in march? obviously if the mother wound up in a mental health institution, there must have been fairly clear warning signs leading up to it. this poor girl's life is forever changed because she went unnoticed by the authorities and her own father. what a shame

Well the article does say that since the first moment he found out the mother let the boy move in he had been calling child services to get them to intervene. It was child services that wouldn't pay attention, the father did what he could under the circumstances.

[bipolarbear]

It's so sad watching these things march out through the generations. You can bet the mother (and father) had broken families and the child to be born to this child barely stands a chance.

Unfortunately, as the economy forces even further cuts in stretched social services I'm afraid what resources are out there will have less to offer and we will have to depend on communities helping those who are in need.

One thing you can do is find out about groups doing good in your neighborhood and donate or volunteer - it can change your (and others) lives!

[JSH812]

what did the mother expect to happen if a 15 year old boy and 12 year old girl share a bed? I just don't understand this. Like, at all.

[AAA07]

Yikes!!

[vbskull]

This is crazy. I feel bad for the dad. He tried but really he did all that he could do. He can't just take the girl out of the house because I think that it is considered kidnapping. I never thought about having sex at 12 let alone wanting a baby now at 23. Wow, this is a disturbing article.