[Flash]

Its frightening on so many levels-
1. To claim that the database is secure is ridiculous- firstly because as we are well aware there are certain individuals within 'professional' settings with dubious reasons for being there, secondly if the Titanic taught us anything- nothing is absolutely safe.
2. An example of how this database will be misued- Firstly you look up an 11 year old girl- lets say my Daughter- you then find out her name and the school she attends. If you then google the name of her school you will now have a photo of her as well (she is on the school council and therefore the website)- You will also have my details, my address and my place of work. Might someone so inclined present themselves at the school with a letter from me (checked against school files looking genuine) explaining how I have asked this person to pick my Daughter up. I too firmly believe the vast majority of schools have better security in place than to allow this to happen but it only takes one- remember Soham and the fact that Police checks werent done (incidentally the Home Office themselves currently estimate that 50% of adults working with children do not currently have a valid Police check in place)

My other feeling about this as I work in this area is that anyone who has read the report about Victoria will know that she did not die because agencies didnt know that 'professionals' were involved but because insuuficient responsibility was taken by anyone to intervene more forcefully.

It is truly shocking that this is happening and I am increasingky ashamed of the Government I once heralded. Another example of how things are going at the moment- Did you know that Youth Offending Teams and Prison transfer agencies have had to invest in booster seats to fit in their cars as we are sending more and more children to prison!
I must now lie down in a darkened room TTFN