A residential child care worker based in Anglesey has been removed from the Register of Social Care Workers after a Social Care Wales hearing found his fitness to practise was currently impaired because of serious misconduct.
On 15 May 2019, Alan Hughes was accused of multiple safeguarding failures when a vulnerable young person he was caring for ran away from the caravan in which they were staying with another care worker.
The hearing was told that throughout the day, Mr Hughes failed to check in on the young person, failed to offer them food, drink and their prescribed medication, and failed to encourage the young person to take part in activities.
The hearing was also told that Mr Hughes’s failures meant he failed to follow the young person’s care plan and placed them at risk of harm.
After considering the evidence, the panel concluded that Mr Hughes acted in a way that fell short of the standards expected of him as a professional social care worker and showed no insight or remorse for his actions.
The panel therefore decided that Mr Hughes’s fitness to practise was currently impaired because of serious misconduct.
Explaining its decision, the panel said: “[E]ach of the matters we have found proved represents conduct that falls significantly short of what would be proper in the field of professional social care practice.”
The panel continued: “Mr Hughes’s lack of insight creates a current risk to individuals using services. This, in our view, aggravates matters as it demonstrates a lack of insight into the potential effect of his conduct not just on the young person, but also on public confidence in the profession.”
Continuing, the panel said: “We consider that in the absence of any real insight or remorse, we cannot conclude that Mr Hughes would make different decisions or behave differently in the future.”
The panel decided to remove Mr Hughes from the Register, saying: “On the evidence before us, only a Removal Order will be adequate. This is because, in our view, there has been a serious departure from the relevant standards set out in the Code of Professional Practice for Social Care. We do not consider that any lesser disposal would protect the public.”
The five-day remote hearing took place over Zoom from 11 to 15 January 2021.