Exclusive:Mother's fight after getting only 90 minutes with son before he died
James died in 2023 - with his mum fighting for answers over the way both she and her son were treated as he approached the end of his life
A teenage boy who died in care was allowed less than 90 minutes with his mother as he was dying, despite a sheriff agreeing they should have contact.
In the final year of his life, James was moved through at least five placements with no family contact.
His mother Laura has now told of her fight to see her son, James, and what she feels are ‘failures’ in his care.
James - ‘a cheery wee boy’ who loved Disney - was born in 2009 with complex disabilities and health needs.
In 2016 he was placed with a foster carer given his mother, a lone parent, was unable to manage his round-the-clock care.
Laura’s contact with her son was repeatedly reduced as her relationship with social work broke down until, in 2019, it was cut completely and James no longer saw his mother or older brother.
His foster placement broke down in 2022 and James was moved repeatedly before being placed in a residential school for disabled children in Lanarkshire.
In 2023, he became ill and was admitted to a local hospital where medical staff placed him on palliative care without consulting his mother.
Staff from the residential school had not known to contact the children’s hospital in Glasgow, where his consultant was.
By then, Renfrewshire Council had successfully applied to the sheriff court for a permanence order and the court appointed curator ad litem - a legal representative for a person without capacity - recommended Laura be granted contact with her son.
The council was aware of the development, but no care review was held to consider his needs, so contact was not reinstated
Eventually, Laura had 10 minutes at her son’s bedside, holding his hand, with the local authority placing strict limits on the timing of the visit and insisting on being present throughout.
James died three days later without seeing his mother again.
Laura is being supported by the charity Parents Advocacy and Rights (PAR) and former senior social worker Maggie Mellon.
Ms Mellon believes statutory regulations were not followed in the year leading up to James’s death, nor immediately afterwards.
No care review was held to consider his new situation after his mother was granted contact by the court and subsequently no children’s plan put in place to specify how to meet his needs.
Ms Mellon said: “With the recommendation to the court that contact with his mother should be reinstated, the local authority could and should have considered this when they moved him to the residential school in September 2022.
“A care review should have considered his needs and feelings.”
The social work expert believes his mother, had she been kept informed, or an advocate, would have fought for him to go to the children’s hospital.
“When a local authority insists they will be the better parents for a child than his mother then they really need to shoulder that responsibility,” Ms Mellon said.
She added: “James was maybe destined to have a shorter life, but why did he spend his last months in the care of strangers without his mother or foster carer?”
The family was also supported by Neil Bibby MSP who said James’s death was “tragic”.
“I fondly remember meeting James and his mum Laura some years ago when we were campaigning to save the children’s ward at the RAH.
“I formally raised Laura’s concerns with Renfrewshire Council on her behalf last year.
“It is clear that she is still looking for answers, and her further concerns must be addressed.”
On the day James died, Laura received a call from a police officer - she still remembers his name - telling her to go to the hospital.
Laura says she had just 10 minutes to sit with James with the social worker present.
Renfrewshire Council said she was allocated from 7.35pm until 9pm but used some of this time to speak to the medical staff about James’s care.
She sang to her son the song You’ll Be In My Heart. And then she said goodbye.
Local authorities, when a child in care dies, have to write a regulation six report for the Care Inspectorate to see if there are any lessons ministers should be aware of to scrutinise and improve care.
Statutory guidance on a child’s death in care states that the views of the family must be considered - but Laura was never consulted.
Ms Mellon says the council is essentially marking its own homework with the regulation six report.
Renfrewshire Council decided not to have a significant case review.
“It needs to be acknowledged they did not properly follow the guidance, and that a child in care died without proper accountability by the council,” Ms Mellon said.
“The Care Inspectorate didn't enforce that, and so they failed in their duty.
“Their whole business is making sure that care standards are high.”
A spokesman for the Care Inspectorate said the death of a child is “traumatic for families, friends, carers and staff”.
"The Care Inspectorate has acted within its responsibilities and in accordance with the scope of the powers available to us."
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Duncan Dunlop, the Scottish Liberal Democrat MSP was previously chief executive of Who Cares? Scotland, the advocacy charity for care experienced people.
He said James’s case was “heartbreaking”.
Mr Dunlop said: “It’s totally unsurprising, which is really sad.
“For people who don’t know the system James’s situation is hard to comprehend but that’s because people don’t understand how much of a big issue this is in our society.
“The system is really broken.”
Renfrewshire Council said it did not receive the sheriff’s recommendation to promote family time until a few days before James’s death.
A spokeswoman for the council said: "The council's main concern at all times was James’s interests, care and welfare.
"We recognise Laura is unhappy with the report submitted to the Care Commission, but we are satisfied it met the Care Commissions requirements."
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