A necessary evil?

A study of private consultants carrying out child protection investigations in Sweden

Abstract

Private consultants carrying out child protection investigations is a relatively new phenomenon in Swedish child welfare. The purpose of the study is to map and deepen the knowledge of the extent of private consultants handling and carrying out child protection investigations and to describe incentives to engage private consultants or terminate assignments in municipalities and town districts. Strategically, the empirical material has been obtained from three counties/22 municipalities and one big town/10 town districts in Sweden. The collection of the empirical material was implemented through structured telephone interviews with a high degree of standardized questions. The result shows that the number of child protection investigations in the examined municipalities/town districts increased markedly from 2013 to 2017, which led to a higher workload, a worse work environment and difficulties in recruiting experienced social secretaries. The majority of the municipalities solved the situation that had arisen by engaging private consultants. The situation gave rise to a market orientation of the investigating part of child welfare and a new arena for private actors was created. Generally, negative experiences of engaging consultants appear in regard to both the quality of the child protection investigations and the work environment at the workplace. The understanding was also that it was an expensive solution. The demand for consultants who could carry out child protection investigations was large and they could therefore dictate the conditions. The experience of the municipalities and town districts was strengthened over time, which meant that they acquired more knowledge of how to be clear in contracts regarding requirements of competence, experience, scope, content and quality. It is not entirely clear which development we can predict, more than stating that the private actors are established in social child welfare.