§ The Earl of Northeskasked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the replies by the Baroness Ashton of Upholland (HL Deb, 1 July, col. 876), under what circumstances something that has been proved to be false can be considered also to be accurate [HL3878]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education and Skills (Baroness Ashton of Upholland). Well-kept records provide an essential underpinning to good child protection practice. Practice experience has shown that families can be more effectively safeguarded when records into past inquiries into one-off (or patterns of) unfounded., false or malicious allegations of child abuse are retained. Should a fresh referral be made at some point in the future, it would be untenable for an agency with child protection responsibilities to deny that there had been any previous history. Agencies that work for the protection of children must be able to record their decisions without fear that these records may be destroyed whenever concerns about a child are ultimately unfounded.