My fight goes on! (From Falmouth Packet)

My fight goes on!

8:00am Wednesday 1st August 2007 in News By Paul Armstrong

A Falmouth grandfather who successfully fought a long-running battle to stop his daughter's two children being put up for adoption claimed yesterday that Cornwall's social services department was being vindictive towards him.

Paul Garvey, of Boslowick Road, can be identified publicly for the first time today after a High Court case came to end and a legal gagging order against him expired. Even though the court ordered that his daughter, Melanie, can keep her children, Mr Garvey said his battle would continue because he had been barred from seeing them.

Mr Garvey's campaign - which included a protest outside County Hall in Truro - was exclusively revealed in the Packet earlier this year. At the time, for legal reasons, the Packet was unable to name him although he chose to risk legal action by identifying himself, placing large notices outside two houses he owns in the town.

Mr Garvey, who was looking after his grandchildren, Leon and Jessica, while his daughter recovered from health problems, complained that social workers had "out of the blue" taken them into care and were planning to put them up for adoption.

The council, although refusing to comment on specific cases, has strongly denied Mr Garvey's claims. The council has recently written to the Press Complaints Commission about the Packet's original report, claiming it was "inaccurate, misleading or distorted." The Packet has filed a defence to the complaint which is now under investigation.

At Truro High Court last week Mr Justice Bennett told Melanie Garvey that she could keep Leon and Jessica under an approved care plan.

But Mr Garvey, whose fight saw him hauled before the courts on more than one occasion with the threat of contempt proceedings, is still not able to see his daughter or his grandchildren because the county council took out an injunction against him.

"Cornwall county council have kept Melanie and our two grandchildren prisoners on the edge of Dartmoor for the past six months," Mr Garvey said yesterday.

"They have taken out injunctions against Melanie's family to keep us away from her and the children.

"We have a recent letter from Cornwall county council saying because of our campaign we cannot see Melanie and the children now or in the future.

"Cornwall county council took us to court and we were given the choice - stop your campaign, don't talk to the press, take your signs down or we will lock you up for up to two years.

"Cornwall county council have put Melanie, her children and our family through hell and still are. This nightmare has been going on for two years and cost the ratepayers millions of pounds. Instead of dragging innocent families through the secret family courts, this money could be spent on local services, the fire brigade or schools.

"We would like to see a public inquiry set up to look into this misuse of public funds."

Mr Garvey and his wife, who have children of their own, looked after their grandchildren for nine months while his daughter was recovering from an illness. They were removed from their care by social services at the end of last year.

Mr Garvey says he is over the moon about his daughter getting her children back but the ban on him seeing them was "vindictive" and aimed at getting back at him following his campaign.

"We are happy Melanie's got the children back but there is a condition to that that I as the grandfather cannot see the grandchildren or Melanie. If she does let me visit, then the children will be taken off her as some kind of punishment for the campaign I was running to get the children back.

"They are being vindictive in what they are doing in keeping us apart. This is the kind of thing social services are doing all over the country.

"The campaign will start again if the injunction is still in place. This is not justice, they are driving our family apart. Those grandchildren should be here with us.

"We have two young children. If we are such bad parents, if we are a risk to our grandchildren, why don't they take our two kids away? We have still got our two kids. We have never been involved with social services before."

This week the council issued a statement saying the case concerning Melanie Garvey and her two children has now concluded, having been heard in the High Court in Truro by Mr Justice Bennett.

The statement said: "Miss Garvey and the children are to remain living together in the community in their own accommodation. The mother will and can care for them and she will have the help and support of Cornwall county council. The children are not to be adopted. The mother, local authority and children's guardian all agree this outcome and the judge, having heard evidence and read the papers, approved the care plan.

"This statement had been issued by the court with the agreement of the local authority, Melanie Garvey and the children's guardian."

The council issued a further statement after being told by the Packet what Mr Garvey had said about the outcome of the case.

The statement said: "Mr Justice Bennett has considered all the evidence presented in this case, including Mr Garvey's viewpoint, and has handed down his case summary which accurately reflects the circumstances in this case. The county council does not wish to add anything further except to state that there is absolutely no truth in Mr Garvey's statement and printing it will not assist this family to move on and put the children first."