Mariëlle Bruning on youth care organisation Accuraat: ‘This goes beyond typical “care cowboy” practices.’
In the media image: Meg Aghamyan on Unsplash+
Deplorable living conditions, violence, and sex work: a long list of abuses at youth care organisation Accuraat. ‘Follow the Money’ investigated the situation and asked Mariëlle Bruning for a response: ‘This goes beyond typical “care cowboy” practices.’
Accuraat provides support and accommodation for young people with mental health problems, difficult home circumstances, or a criminal record. Reports of abuses and misconduct at several of its facilities have surfaced repeatedly since 2018, when regulators concluded that the organisation needed to improve its services. Dutch platform for investigative journalism Follow the Money spoke to staff members and residents, who spoke of drug use, violence, sex work, punishment, and substandard living conditions.
Mariëlle Bruning was asked to provide context for the article. According to her, the problems come down to shortages in the youth care sector: ‘At the moment, we have a failing youth care system. This increasingly leads to these kinds of excesses because it is too easy to abuse the system.’ She adds that many entrepreneurs see an opportunity to make easy money from vulnerable young people who have nowhere else to turn: ‘It amounts to the deliberate mistreatment of young people for financial gain.’
Responsibility for changing this situation lies with the bodies that commission care services, such as municipalities and government authorities, as well as with judges who assess young people’s cases. However, they often have to base their decisions on information that is incomplete. For example, it is not always known whether a care provider has been subject to sanctions or enhanced supervision. ‘There is no central oversight, the Inspectorate is responsible for monitoring thousands of organisations, and there are always municipalities that need places. It is unacceptable because no child or young person should be subjected to this.'
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Read the full article on Follow the Money.