Kiri

The 4 part drama Kiri was entertaining and at times poignant. In some ways, it avoided some obvious stereotypes - it was neither the black father nor the adoptive mother with mental health problems who killed the child. The portrayal of the adoptive family as far from perfect with some secrets and hidden issues was helpful. Kiri's attachment and interest in her birth family was demonstrated.

The portrayal of the social worker and her working life was mixed. Social workers bringing dogs to work and drinking on the job stopped about 20 years ago. The viewer was shown the pressure on the social worker and the challenge of making the right decision in impossible circumstances. The social worker's deep felt anguish when it went wrong is realistic. The emotional investment in her job was true to life as was the lack of support from the organisation.

When the child was murdered and an inquiry took place, the line manager was seen to very quickly distance herself from decision making. This is sadly not unusual. Social workers are line managed and work in a hierarchical local authority system. This often makes other agencies despair that social workers can't make decisions without consulting their managers. However, when thing go wrong, it is still the front line social worker who is put through the mill by both the media and their employing organisation. The attempt by Lord Laming to ensure chief executives and heads of service carried the responsibility has still not worked in practice.