Public children law: Timeline of Local Authority intervention
If the local authority or social services are made aware of any issues regarding child welfare, they are duty-bound to investigate this further. Local Authority intervention can be complex and confusing at times. There are various meetings and processes which parents need to be aware of, as well as plans to adhere to, and assessments and courses to engage with.
It is important that parents are aware of the differences between each stage of local authority intervention and what may or may not come next. This article outlines some of the various stages and details the objectives and reasoning behind each stage.
Do please note that not all stages will be relevant to your particular case. Your specialist family lawyer will explain those relevant to you.
- Child in Need
A Child in Need (CIN) is a voluntary service for families requiring local authority services to maintain a reasonable standard of health or development for their child or children. Following a referral for additional support, social services will complete an assessment to understand the child’s needs, parental capacity and environmental factors, and create a plan to assist the family to ensure the child’s needs are met.
2. Child in Need Plan
A social worker will work with you to identify support that might be appropriate for you and help you access that support. Should you wish to engage with the suggested support, they will write a plan with you and your child (where appropriate).
CIN plans are reviewed every three months. The child will remain on the plan until the child’s needs are met, or if risks increase, it may be upgraded to Child Protection level.
3. Child Protection
If social services receive a referral, suspect a child to be suffering, or is likely to suffer significant harm, they have a duty to investigate such concerns.
The aim of the assessment is to gather information to decide whether action is needed to safeguard the child’s welfare. Unlike CIN, this is a mandatory process. If, after the investigation, social services believe there is a risk that the child or children are at risk of harm, they must hold a Child Protection Conference to discuss these concerns, and what help may be available.
4. Child Protection Conference
A child protection conference is a muti-agency meeting, which means there will be various professionals, and key people involved in the child’s life, in attendance. This is usually, a representative from the school or nursery that the child attends, along with a school nurse or health visitor. If parents engage with other professional services, such as a harbour worker, domestic abuse support worker, or housing officer, they will also be invited to attend. If there is any concerning police information to share, a representative from the police may also attend.
During the conference, the social worker will outline their worries, as well as any positives that they have identified. After this information is shared, a decision will be made as to whether they consider the child or children to be at risk of significant harm. If this is the outcome, a Child Protection Plan will be produced.
5. Child Protection Plan
Child Protection plans are mandatory plans put in place to ensure a child’s safety, prevent further harm, and promote their health and development by reducing risk factors.
CP plans are reviewed every three months, and conferences are held every six months.
The Child Protection plan will remain in place until there is no longer a risk of harm, or the child turns 18 years old. If a parent fails to engage with the plan and address the concerns, social services may take further action. This could be either by issuing pre-proceedings, or in cases of imminent harm, by issuing care proceedings (court involvement).
6. Core Group Meeting
A core group meeting is a multi-agency meeting with social services, held within 10 working days of an Initial Child Protection Conference to develop, implement, and monitor a child’s protection plan. The meeting is led by the social worker, and will likely include family members, parents, and professionals (health, education) to assess progress, ensure safety, and meet at least every 6 weeks.
7. Pre-proceedings (PLO)
A Public Law Outline meeting is part of a procedure that takes place when social services have identified there to be issues with a child’s welfare, but they believe that an agreement can be arranged with the parents to improve this. They then invite the parents, or those who have parental responsibility, to a Public Law Outline meeting. At this stage, parents, or anyone with parental responsibility, will require a lawyer to assist them during the proceedings.
During the PLO meeting, a schedule of expectations will be created. This will be similar to the CP plan to ensure the child/ren’s needs are being met. You can read more about this in our recent PLO article.
8. Legal Planning Meeting (LPM)
A Legal Planning Meeting is a meeting that takes place internally within social services. The purpose of the meeting is for social services to discuss the case and seek their own legal advice as to whether the matter should step down to either Child Protection or Child In Need. If matters remain the same or concerns increase, the Local Authority may decide to issue Court proceedings.
9. Care Proceedings
If the Local Authority believes the child/ren are suffering, or likely to suffer significant harm, commonly due to either neglect, physical/emotional/sexual abuse, domestic violence, substance misuse, or the inability of parents to protect the child then they may progress to care proceedings. This is often a last resort and should conclude within 26 weeks.
If the Local Authority issue proceedings, it may ask the family court to make a temporary order called an Interim Care Order or Interim Supervision Order.
If it is granted, an Interim Care Order means that it will share parental responsibility for your children, but it also means it will have the power to place your children in foster care or with alternative family members whilst the Local Authority assesses your parenting ability or further investigations are undertaken in respect of your case
This is explained more fully in our article about Care Orders, what they mean and next steps.
Alternatively, the Local Authority may seek an Interim Supervision Order. This means your children can remain living with either you or family members under the supervision of the Local Authority.
If the Local Authority issues care proceedings, it is crucial that you seek legal advice ahead of any Court hearings taking place.
If you need advice on the above, or any other related to child care law and local authority intervention, then contact GA Solicitors’ specialist team today. You can call our family lawyers in Plymouth on 01752 203500 or email me directly via caitlin.johns@GAsolcitors.com.
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