A former Paisley care home worker has been warned about a close relationship with a vulnerable boy he helped look after.
Liam McGrory, who was employed as a child and youth care worker, also wrongly kept up the relationship with the youngster and his dad after he quit the role.
The Scottish Social Service Council (SSSC) placed an 18-month warning on his registration after it found he had “failed to maintain professional boundaries with a vulnerable young person”.
It emerged during a hearing that McGrory became so close to the family that he failed to let anyone know when the young person, named only as AA in the SSSC report, ran away from home.
The report notes: “On one occasion, you failed to immediately inform your manager when the young person’s father advised you during your non-working hours that the young person had absconded from the family home and requested your assistance.
“You also failed to respond to telephone calls from your manager.”
The delay meant police and social work were not informed.
He also attended a football match with AA after he had been sacked from his job, again in breach of SSSC rules.
McGrory also helped the young person submit a referral to the ‘Moving Forward Together’ programme despite the fact he should not have been in contact with them, which the SSSC described as a “misuse of power”.
It noted: “Your continued involvement in a personal and unofficial capacity with a vulnerable young person was a misuse of the power and authority placed in social service workers by service users and the public and shows a disregard for professional values.”
He was ordered to complete training if he wishes to continue working in the field, covering managing and understanding professional boundaries and effective communication.
He will also be subjected to close monitoring to make sure he sticks to the code of conduct laid down by the SSSC.
The watchdog told him he had “breached the trust and confidence of your employer and fellow professionals when you failed to follow the Code of Practice and procedures and practices designed to protect vulnerable young people”.
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