Social workers can become involved if they are worried about your child and the care they are receiving. It can be a very difficult time for you as a parent, or family member, as they are looking to apply for a Court Order which will impact your family life.

You cannot ignore the Court proceedings and it is important that you participate, otherwise decisions will be made without your input by a Judge. This is a stressful time and it is important that you obtain advice from a specialist solicitor.  Martyn Wood, Head of our Childcare Department confirms the process involved in care proceedings:

What Are Care Proceedings?

Care proceedings normally happen when the social workers believe that they can prove that harm has been caused by something that you have contributed to by either doing or not doing something.

The social worker through their legal department will make an application to the Court for either an interim Care Order or interim supervision Order. An interim Care Order will mean that the Local authority will share parental responsibility with you and any other person who has parental responsibility. The Care Plan put forward by the Local authority could be to ask the Judge to remove your child from your care into foster care whilst more time is taken to look at your situation and to see what has happened.

It is likely that the court proceedings will take no less than 6 months before the Court will make a final decision.  The reasons that social workers ask for court Orders can be anything from an unexplained injury to your child to a case of long-term neglect where social workers are saying that despite ongoing involvement nothing has improved. There is not a set list of circumstances that result in care proceedings, and it will be individual to your family.

What Are the Initial Steps in Care Proceedings?

The initial steps will be an application to the Court. The applications are normally arranged at very short notice and the Court can allow for you to be only given an hours’ notice in certain circumstances.

There will be a first hearing which is for the Judge to decide what will happen whilst further assessments of you are completed. The Judge could make a decision at this hearing or may decide to allow you more time to put your case at a hearing at which you can produce further evidence with the help of your solicitor. If the local authority has applied for an emergency order it is likely that the Court will make a decision on the day.

What Are the Next Steps of Care Proceedings?

After the initial hearing, your case can take up to a minimum of six months to reach final decisions about the long-term care of your child.

The court will ask for evidence to be provided from agencies such as schools, health visitors who are involved with your child to provide a summary of their involvement with you and your child so that this can be presented to the court. Information may also be requested from the Police, doctors depending on the issues in your case. If the concerns relating to you involve drugs, alcohol or concerns around your mental health the Court may be asked to make a decision about whether expert evidence should be allowed from an independent expert.

As part of the evidence to be gathered to allow a final decision to be made you will be required to prepare a statement with your solicitor and participate in a parenting assessment. A Guardian will be appointed who is independent of the local authority to advise the Court about what is in the best interests of your child.

What Are the Potential Outcomes Following Care Proceedings?

The main type of Orders that are applied for are a Care Order, Supervision Order, and Placement order.

A Care order means that the local authority will share parental responsibility with you. A supervision order is where the social worker does not have parental responsibility, but they will have a duty to support your family. A placement order can be made at the end of proceedings, and this is where the local authority is recommending that your child should not return home and be placed for adoption.

The local authority cannot obtain an Order without the approval or judgment of a Judge. You will have the opportunity to disagree with each of the orders.

Family Law Solicitors in Sheffield and Barnsley

At Best Solicitors, we have an experienced team that specialises in representing people in care proceedings.

We are accredited members of the Law Societies Children Panel and regularly appear in Court in Care proceedings. We can help you navigate the Court process and advise you regarding the legal position and what action you can take.

We will listen and be available to help you during this difficult and upsetting journey. This is a difficult time and you need to remain as positive as you can and keep in touch with us to enable us to help you in the process.

Get in touch with our team today on 0114 3583134 or send us a message via our contact page and we will call you back.