Report: Extensive failures at foster services before girl’s severe beating; Mom unnerved

A report from the Dutch Health Care Inspectorate (IGJ) and the Inspectorate of Justice and Security (IJV) has revealed a six-month period during which an 11-year-old girl in Vlaardingen was inadequately supervised by child protection agencies. The girl was severely abused by her foster parents, resulting in permanent injuries.

"Although I can’t get my daughter back, reading the report relieves me somewhat," the girl’s biological mother said in a statement provided by her family. "It is now clear in black and white that I was right to be deeply worried about my daughter’s safety."

The girl, who had been placed in foster care after her biological mother lost custody, was hospitalized in May 2024 with severe injuries, including brain trauma and multiple fractures. She was unresponsive upon arrival at the hospital and later remained in a coma. The child is now permanently dependent on intensive care.

The report indicates that despite multiple attempts by the girl to seek help, child protection agencies, including the William Schrikker Foundation (WSS) and Enver, failed to intervene. The girl had reportedly asked for help several times, but no action was taken.

The report identifies the six-month period without proper supervision as a critical failure. Agencies involved in the case were criticized for not taking necessary steps to ensure the girl’s safety despite the prolonged risks.

Following the report’s release, WSS and Enver were placed under intensified oversight. Both organizations were found to have failed in monitoring the girl’s safety during her placement with foster parents. In response to the findings, WSS acknowledged its failure in ensuring the girl’s protection. “Our organization was responsible for the safety and oversight of the girl, and we failed in our duties,” stated Pim van Uchelen, chairman of the board at WSS.

The Dutch child protection organization Jeugdzorg Nederland also expressed concern over the situation, stating that the child should have received better protection. “This case highlights significant failings in safeguarding vulnerable children,” said Ronnie van Diemen, chair of Jeugdzorg Nederland.

The abuse began when the girl, then 10, and her sister were placed with foster parents John and Daisy van den B., both 38, in March 2022. The sister was later returned to her biological mother in 2023, but the girl remained with the Van den B.s. According to the IGJ and IJV report, the foster parents subjected the girl to months of abuse, which included physical assault, malnourishment, and confinement in an electrified cage. The report also details how the foster parents portrayed the girl as a "pathological liar" to cover up the mistreatment.

The child’s foster care supervisor, identified only as "Rob," reportedly played a central role in the failure to act. As her assigned supervisor, Rob was responsible for monitoring the girl's well-being. However, he is said to have maintained a relationship more akin to a family friend with the foster parents, dismissing any reports of abuse. Even when signs of mistreatment were obvious, Rob insisted that the Van den B.s. provided a "loving place" for the girl. He further downplayed prior allegations of abuse from other foster children placed with the couple, denying the severity of the situation.

In 2021, Enver had placed three Syrian brothers with the Van den B.s. under Rob's supervision. While one boy was moved quickly after an argument, the other two remained until September 2021. They were then urgently removed after reports of abuse surfaced, including claims that they had been kept in a dog cage and deprived of food and clothing. Although the police asked Nidos, the youth protection agency responsible for the boys, to press charges, no action was taken at the time. Six months later, Rob placed the girl and her sister into the same home.

Between June and August 2022, further reports indicated concerning behavior in the foster home, including accusations of sexual abuse by John van den B. toward the girl. A youth worker from WSS, however, dismissed these claims, and Rob maintained that they were unfounded. No one from either WSS or Enver directly spoke to the girl or sought medical examination. These oversights were crucial in failing to protect the child, as stated in the report.

In early December 2024, the girl confided in a supermarket employee that she was struggling to walk and that her foster parents were physically abusing her, AD reported. Concerned, the supermarket contacted the police, who documented visible injuries on her legs. However, authorities concluded that there was insufficient evidence to determine whether the injuries resulted from abuse.

Later that month, the girl reported to school staff that she was frequently yelled at, punished, and beaten at home. She also described being forced to stand outside naked in the middle of winter as a form of punishment. Instead of escalating the report, the school consulted her foster mother and ultimately sent her back home.

On another occasion at a shopping mall, the girl approached strangers, pleading for help and stating that she was being abused. School employees later picked her up but returned her to her foster family.

In May 2024, John van den B. brought the girl to the hospital in a severely malnourished state, with multiple broken bones and serious brain damage. Medical staff immediately alerted the police, who arrested the foster parents. The Public Prosecution Service (OM) has charged the couple with attempted manslaughter, severe assault, unlawful deprivation of liberty, and causing severe harm. The charges also include abuse of the girl’s sister and the two Syrian brothers placed with them earlier.