Would Social Services contact a pregnant person?

A question about : Would Social Services contact a pregnant person?

My cousin is pregnant and living with her bf in their own appartment. No one really likes him as he is a bit of a tit and has a bit of a chequered past - he never sees his child from his previous relationship for various reasons.. He's not even allowed supervised visits. He's been to anger managemen etc too.

3 weeks ago, my cousin told various agencies such as housing, DWP etc that she was pregnant and they took the fathers details.. Then today she has rec'd a letter from Social Services asking her to contact them.

So she phoned up and all that they said on the phone was they want to come out to see her to check she is ok..

Has his name/NI number triggered something?

I've spoken to a few people who are expecting around the same time and they havent been contacted by SS.

Best answers:

• possibly his criminal history
  or for some reason they have been put down as high risk parents - on of them could have been a victim of abuse, criminal past, drugs lots of things
• I think maybe move this to family forum for more responses. This ones for financial child support
• ok thansk. Wasnt sure as I never use this section.
• Yes definitely, they do it all the time.
  My assumption would be that this is to do with the father's chequered past.
  Social Services will want to ensure that your cousin is aware of all the risks so she can protect her baby. There must be some concerns if he isn't even allowed supervised contact with his own child.
  Your cousin needs to ensure that she prioritises her baby over her partner, if not, Social Services will have huge concerns.
• It's more likely the referral has come from the GP or midwife than the DWP.
• I would be very worried. Their concern will be for the child's welfare which they will want to protect as they see fit, and they are unlikely to care about your cousin's welfare or her partner's. If she allows them to visit, I think it would be wise to arrange for another witness to be present if possible, in case social services' reports differ from her recollection.
• If there is a criminal history police can contact social services but unless a recent incident they would be unlikely to know. I would suggest the most likely reason would be midwifery service have concerns and as such have made a referral. However good practice would be that they should tell her. If social services were aware of issues with his own child they could contact if they become aware of a new baby potentially at risk. Maybe other parent of his own child expressed concern to them. SS would be concerned at how she is protecting herself and the unborn concern as entire reason for contacting. Financial stuff really does not trigger anything as to be realistically they are not concerned with benefits even abuse of benefits.
• if he isnt allowed to see his other children supervised this does not sound good i would be there to support your cousin as she may have some VERY difficult choices ahead
• It's as if the baby will be born with a "marker" on its head.
  Cousin is quite thick naive to be honest so her mum and dad would be there for the visit.
• It's a bit of a worry if she is naive, do you think she will believe everything he tells her (even if it isn't true).
• She will believe some, but not everything he says.
• Do you know why he's not allowed contact with his child? It sounds like that is the likely trigger.
  I received contact when I was pregnant with DD1 due to my history with my parents: father violent, mother massively neglectful and court proceedings meant father wasn't allowed near me when I was a child. They just wanted to check that I wasn't in contact with him, that I was coping ok (it did bring up lots of memories) so it will likely be about his past if there is a reason he's not allowed access.
  They are not all the baby stealing harpies some make them out to be, but if your cousin is naive, especially with regards him, it would be wise to have her Mum and Dad there just in case she doesn't take in how serious it is (if it is serious and not just a general check).