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Impact of FII Report, Cerebra

  • sallycrussell
  • Nov 2
  • 2 min read

Updated: Dec 1


Luke Clements and Ana Laura Aiello


The research report by Cerebra and the University of Leeds, titled "The prevalence and impact of allegations of Fabricated or Induced Illness (FII)" (November 2023), reveals that FII allegations are widespread against parents of disabled children and cause significant trauma.


The key messages are:

  • Widespread Prevalence: FII allegations are widespread, with parents in at least 74% of English children’s services authorities reporting having experienced them. Authorities in Scotland and Wales were also reported as initiating such allegations.


  • Major Finding: Family Trauma: The primary impact is devastating and lifelong trauma to those accused, including the children. This trauma does not disappear if the allegation is later shown to be mistaken.


  • High False Positive Rate: The research suggests that the majority of allegations are unfounded: 84% of FII allegations resulted in no follow-up action or were abandoned, and in 95% of cases, the child remained living with the parent. This supports the concern that the identification measures are leading to a high number of "false positives".


  • Disabled Parents at Higher Risk: Disabled parents appear to be four times more likely to be accused of FII than non-disabled parents, raising questions about compliance with the Equality Act 2010.


  • Allegations Follow Complaints: 50% of the FII allegations reported in the research were made after the parent carer had complained about the actions of the relevant public body.


  • Source of Allegations: NHS practitioners were the source of most FII allegations, followed by schools and then local authority children's services.


  • Urgent Need for Revision: The report calls for urgent material revisions to the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) 2021 FII guidance, specifically to:

    • Address its failure to recognize the harm to parents and children caused by the allegations.


    • Address the danger that its "alerting signs" may have an adverse discriminatory impact on disabled parents.


    • Acknowledge that its "alerting signs" are unsupported by any peer-reviewed research.





 
 
 

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