Do I have to pay court fees?

 Not necessarily if  you are claiming benefits or on a low income. You may be able to get all or part of your court fees paid (remission)  The form you need to complete is can be a little confusing though. So I thought I could give the benefit of my experience of completing it a number of times under different circumstances. This cannot cover every scenario so if what I say does not apply to you and you are confused please contact me or try to get help from elsewhere such as Citizen's Advice Bureau. 

The basics:
It is easier if possible to complete the form on a computer, if not it must be filled in with black ink and in CAPITAL letters.

If you are receiving benefits you must have an original letter of proof no older than one month old. The DWP will provide this, but  at time of writing local offices are not supposed to do so now so you may have to phone a regional office and wait for it to come through the post. However if you ask very nicely and explain that it is for court in practice local offices will sometimes provide the letter .  If you are wishing to appeal , you only have 21 days to do so, it is very important to get this letter as soon as you can.

If you are part of a couple you must enter both peoples income, unless you have a contrary interest, e.g you are divorcing 


Examples 

Peter has a long term health problem and is in receipt of ESA. He lives in a rented property, has a car and has no savings. Peter needs his car so that does not count as disposable capital and he checks that his ESA is income related. He obtains a letter from the DWP, emphasising to them that it must state that his ESA is income related and is entitled to a full fee remission.

Luke has split up with his wife , she is still living in the marital home which is mortgaged, with their children. He has no other capital.He pays child maintenance and is in a part time job, and claims Working Tax Credit his gross( before tax and other deductions) is £985 per month. Luke will have to provide  proof of child maintenance payments, his last months pay slip, his last three months of bank statements and a letter dated within the last month confirming his tax credit. As his wife is still living in the marital home,there is a contrary interest the value of the home does not count as disposable capital. He also will be entitled to full fee remission.

Sally is single and owns her own home with no mortgage she earns a gross monthly income of £1600 .  She receives no other income.That takes her above the full remission threshold for a single person of £1085 per month. However if she used Fee remissions contribution calculator she may get a partial fee remission as she is below the upper income limit of £5,085 per month.

Court fees are expensive it is well worth the time to fill in the form.If you are applying to court in an emergency you may receive a fee remission without initially provided evidence of income.

Depression

I love this video and the book. It explains depression so simply and yet effectively. Both domestic violence and family breakdown can result in depression. You are likely to get sleep problems as well  If you recognise any of the symptoms in the video please get help. If you had a physical health problem you would.

Children especially those in the care system can also suffer from depression.

Growing up with alcoholism

Can your children bring friends home? Or could you not?

Did you feel alone in a crowd. Is a parent's drinking putting a strain on the family budget. How afraid do you feel when something kicks off ? Are you attracted to dysfunctional relationships? Is your home life chaotic?

In the UK it is estimated that 8% of males and 5% of females are alcoholics. It is therefore a widespread problem, most people will know an alcoholic but alcoholism causes stigma for a family and isolation.

12 step programmes can help both an alcoholic and friends and families affected by another person's addiction. Alcoholism is commonly seen as a disease , the alcoholic does not want to drink as they do. There is no condemnation within the 12 step programmes just people want to share what worked for them.

The programmes can change the generational  "curse" of addiction.

This podcast explains about the history of AA

Below is a You Tube Video created by AL Anon

Miscarriage of Justice?

Have you been disgusted by you or your families treatment in family court?

I would like to hear your story. Have you been lied about? Have false statements been used? Court orders ignored by the other parties. Has it caused you anxiety or Post traumatic stress disorder

All of the above or something else?

Or did you have a positive experience.

I would like to publish a few stories to reflect what happens sometimes in the family courts. Please contact me if you can help 

Litigant in Person

 New statistics just released confirm the number of litigants in person are up in private law family cases.

The number of private law disposals where both parties were represented fell by 42% in October to December 2014 compared to the same quarter the previous year. This continues the trend since Q2 2013. 

The full report is here

http://bit.ly/1Nub6Dg

So what some will say, there are many mutterings and somewhat louder comments on various family law forums about rip off legal aid lawyers. You will be surprised to hear that I am not a mutterer myself  as I commented before when I had legal representation in my own family case I had an appalling solicitor and a fantastic one. A Mckenzie fulfils a different role , I assist you to run your own case, provide much needed moral support and keep you focused. You are much more in control and I am more accessible and quicker to respond than the average solicitor.  I would say that I fulfil a similar role to a birth partner, I will calm you down, I will listen even when you are upset and tell you when to push your point!  

Of course you can run your own case but there are a number of reasons not to:

1. It is difficult to logical when you are so emotionally involved

2. With the closing of the courts public counters , it is even more difficult to file an application/bundle etc

3. Court is formal, even lawyers get nervous  at times, you are very likely too and will miss important points

4.Dare I say solicitors can be difficult to deal with, they are not always the best at communication. Though you would have to communicate a mckenzie can prompt and advise.

5. Court forms and the Ministry of Justice website can be baffling to say the least.
6. In the long run it could actually cost you more , litigation that goes on for years is draining, financially, emotionally and eats away at time.By investing in a little help at the start ,it is likely to shorten the time spent in court.It's just really like changing the oil in your car rather than then shelling out on a major service in the future.

If you do decide to represent yourself I would urge you to at least take a friend along for moral support. Some courts have Personal Support Units , who will not  legally advise but offer practical support.

www.thepsu.org

Humberside Police  inconsistent approach to domestic violence

 

A recent HMIC report criticises Humberside Police

Here is an extract from the report:

HMIC has made an initial consideration of the action plan submitted by Humberside Police.

We found the action plan details activity that is in line with the agreed national priorities

outlined above. However, there is no clear evidence to highlight how the force has met the vast majority of the requirements.

 The force has provided information around ongoing activity to demonstrate a foward-looking approach and intention, but not included clear evidence of what they have been doing since the

HMIC inspection and report publication in March 2014. 

 There is also no clear reference to the HMIC force recommendations within this submitted plan.

The crime inspection provided us with our first opportunity to test whether changes in the force's approach to domestic abuse were beggining to have a positive effect.

HMIC found that, although domestic abuse was a priority for the force, there was a fragmented and inconsistent approach across the force with victims not always recieving the level of support they needed.

There was a concern about standard and medium risk cases and although there were examples of good partnership work this again varied across the force.

We found evidence in Humberside that activity related to domestic abuse remains inconsistent across the force.

 Although the force was piloting a Repeat Victim Group,identifying vulnerability issues, building links with MARAC and offering tactical resources for higher risk cases, this was limited to one policing area. 

This is my local police force and this report holds no surprises. I completely agree with the inconsistent approach the Inspector found .  In fact I would go further than that from local   knowledge .In my opinion Humberside Police and I am sure it's not just them need to pull their socks up.

As I outlined in a previous post there are long term costs of domestic violence in terms of mental health, there is also a knock on effect on children , housing and physical health. If anyone is happy to share a personal story anonymously please contact me. Or if you require help with using the police complaints procedure I am also willing to assist you.

Link to HMIC report here http://bit.ly/19aucku

Child Arrangement Orders

Applications for child arrangements orders are usually between private individuals, under s8 Children Act 1989. They are known as private law orders. Where someone seeks an order in respect of a child who is in the care of the local authority it will be considered a public law matter.

In private law cases the child is not a party to the proceedings unless there are particular circumstances that make the case complex. The court can however request a welfare report under s7 Children Act 1989, either from the local authority or from a Children and Family Reporter who is an officer appointed by Cafcass. The report will usually inform the court of the child's wishes and feelings, but the officer will make a recommendation based on what they think is in the child's best interests rather than just report on the child's wishes.

In some circumstances the court may order that the child is made a party to the proceedings.If it considers it is the best interests of the child to do so Then a  Children's Guardian (who again is an officer of Cafcass) is appointed to represent the child in the proceedings and the Guardian will appoint a solicitor. If the child and Guardian do not agree on what recommendations to make to the court and the child is of sufficient age and understanding, they will be able to instruct a solicitor directly to represent their views and the Guardian will present their own views to the court. 

Some people are entitled to apply for child arrangements 

orders; others need the court’s permission first. If you are the 

child’s mother or father you are entitled to apply. You can also 

apply if you are a step parent and you have treated the child 

as your child. A step parent is someone who is married to or

 the civil partner of a parent who has parental responsibility for

 the child. Other people, such as grandparents, will generally 

need the court’s permission to apply for a court order unless

 the child has already lived with them for at least 3 years.

A court which is considering making, varying or discharging a Child Arrangements Orders, including making any directions or conditions which may be attached to such an order, must have regard to the paramountcy principle, the ‘no order’ principle and the welfare check list.

Domestic violence the effect on mental health

There is an established link between mental health problems and domestic violence . The most common disorders are depression, anxiety and post traumatic stress disorder.  Self harm and attempted suicide are also far more prevalent .

 In a study published in the British Medical Journal, Bradley et al (2002) found that experience of domestic violence was associated with much higher levels of depression than was found among women who had not experienced domestic violence. Among women who were depressed, 67% had experienced domestic violence as compared with 33% who had not. This finding means that two thirds of women with depression have experienced domestic violence. Should this mean that woman and men presenting at the GP with symptoms of depression be screened for domestic violence?

Breslau et al (1998) investigated the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder following trauma in a sample of the general population and found that those who had suffered rape and other violence had greatly increased rates of post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD). They found that 49% of those subject to rape suffered PTSD; 54% of those who were held captive, tortured or kidnapped; 15% of those who were shot or stabbed; 24% of those who suffered sexual assault other than rape; 8% of those who were threatened with a weapon; and 32% of those who were badly beaten up. This compares with 2% of those in a serious car crash. Women were more twice as likely as men to suffer PTSD following a trauma.   

 Time and again I have seen in family cases domestic violence victims being labelled with serious mental illness , often having their children placed elsewhere I have never seen this labelled as PTSD, which of course is treatable. A domestic violence victim is entitled to legal aid in private law proceedings if they can prove evidence of domestic violence within the last 60 months.                     

  

Pets and Family Breakdown

Are you pets as much part of the family as anyone else?  We love them, certainly in the case of dogs they give us devotion back.   

Over half of households in the UK own a pet but how do you protect their welfare in the event of family breakdown?

The Blue Cross Animal Charity appears to believe foresight is the key and provides a downloadable pre nuptial agreement.

Find out more here http://bit.ly/1N4R1U3 

Another area where animal charities help is in fostering animals where owners are fleeing from domestic violence.There is an established link between abuse of animals and domestic violence and many victims are reluctant to leave their animals.

Here are some charities that offer help:

www.rspca.org.uk/whatwedo/petretreat

http://bit.ly/1LMXXJW

 

President of Family Division Mckenzie Friends add value

,     
                                                                                                          A recent report from the House of Commons Justice Committee quoted Sir James Munby President of  the Family Division  “in the areas where there is no
representation, some kind of support or input is better than nothing. In my experience
most McKenzie friends add value. They tend to be articulate and to have understood what
the case is. Many of them have a surprisingly good grasp of the law, not just book law but
how the courts work.”



You can read the whole report here: http://bit.ly/1ByXLWO

Lord  Dyson Master of the Rolls told the committee 
"The problem comes not at the hearing stage, but at the pre-hearing stage and the case
management conference stage when the judge first gets to grips with the case, tries to
knock it into shape, see what the issues are, and give directions for the efficient and
proportionate conduct of the litigation. It is at that stage where, if you have lawyers
present, they are used to narrowing the issues, and they do.
He said that is was primarily lack of legal advice, rather than lack of representation, which
meant that “Judges have to spend ages ploughing through page after page of applications
for permission to appeal, very often in almost illegible manuscript, and they take much
longer than would something equivalent from a lawyer. In fact, the likelihood is that a
lawyer would not do it because they would know there was [no legal merit] in it.” The
need for judges to ensure justice is done means they cannot rely on unrepresented litigants’
conception of their cases.                                                                                                           Sir James Munby told us: “…litigants in person, particularly in
family cases, think they have a lot of good points. Most of their good points are thoroughly
bad points. It is a slight exaggeration, but they have great difficulty in finding the good
points. You have to go on your own search to find the good points, and that takes up a lot
of time.” Sir James also said that “there is a lot of anecdotal material” that litigants in
person led to hearings in the early stages of family cases taking longer because of the need to explain proceedings to the unrepresented litigant, although Sir James also said “I suspect
there may be truth in the assertion that the final hearing is taking less time…” because
“litigants in person…tend to dry up.”

 Lord Dyson agreed with Sir James that hearing times are not a good indication of
whether the litigant in person is able successfully to represent themselves:
I am afraid, that very often litigants in person are totally overawed by the experience
and they just dry up…They put in their witness statement and their case, and you
say, “Now, Mr So-and-So, what do you want to add?” They just say, “Well, nothing.”
They just freeze, frankly. Of course, there are some litigants in person who will go on
talking for ever, but if you balance the two it does not surprise me, if the evidence
shows this, that overall the length of a hearing with a litigant in person is no greater
than with lawyers.
Lord Dyson told us, that while judges make all possible allowance for litigants in person,
they could only go so far: “We still have an adversarial system…I suppose a judge could
say, if the judge sees that there is something in the litigant in person’s witness statement
that is crying out for some elaboration, “Mr So-and-So, I see you say this in paragraph 25
of your statement. I wonder whether…”” but the judge ran the risk of losing the faith of the
other party in the case if he or she was seen to do the opposing party’s job for them.

 Sir James also emphasised the use of safeguards, such as hearing directly from the litigant,
even where the McKenzie friend has been given permission to address the court. Steve
Brookner, of the Legal Services Consumer Panel, which supports the greater use of
McKenzie friends, emphasised that judges had the power to exclude disruptive McKenzie
friends. 
What a Mckenzie friend does has been previously posted. 

Records The best use of a tenner

Records, Records, Records  

 Hello baby, hello records. The moment we are born a paper trail starts, though nowadays  a computer trail starts as well. I really do wonder how much is held by different organisations on individuals.

For those families involved with Children's Services , Cafcass or problems with education providers etc records take on an immense importance as they are used in evidence against them in court. However there are national standards of record keeping                                                                                                                                                                                                          Social Services Inspectorate report  1999 set out 6 national standards in case recording . A summary of the standards is as follows:

Standard 1 Case recording should be seen as being part of the overall service to users and carers, with the views of service users clearly recorded and with service users receiving copies of records such as assessments and care plans

Standard 2 The quality and content of case recording reflects good professional practice as well as social care policy and guidance

Standard 3 The purpose of case recording, together with underpinning principles and legal requirements, should be set out in the policies of the organisation

Standard 4 The agency should have guidance on, and systems for, receiving contributions to case records from external sources, and the appropriate sharing of such information received

Standard 5 Good practice in equal opportunities should be reflected in the case record

Standard 6 Management arrangements need to ensure that the practice of case recording meets accepted good professional standards as well as the policy and procedural requirements of the organisation

If that's a bit dry , try this

 Data Protection, Confidentiality and Access to Files

The Data Protection Act (DPA) 1998 covers both paper-based and electronic records. It affects anyone who processes personal data and all organisations are under legal requirement to ensure that all staff comply with the legislation.

The DPA sets out 8 principles relevant to 'Recording Matters' as follows:

All personal data must be:

Processed lawfully;

Held and processed for only one or more specified and lawful purposes;

Adequate, relevant and not excessive in relation to the purposes for which it is processed;

Accurate and where necessary kept up to date;

Kept for no longer than is necessary;

Processed in accordance with the rights of data subjects under the Act;

Protected by appropriate technical and organisational measures to prevent unauthorised or unlawful processing of data or loss of data through accident or damage;

Not transferred to a country or territory outside the EU unless the receiving country ensures an adequate level of protection for personal data.

In addition, 6 'Caldicott' confidentiality principles stem from case law, namely:

Justify the purpose of recording data;

Do not use personal data unless it is absolutely necessary;

Use the minimum necessary personal data;

Access to personal data should be on a 'need to know' basis;

Everyone with access to personal data should be aware of their responsibilities;

Understand and comply with the law.

The most important bit

The upside of all these records that are held about yourself and your family is that they are accessible for a maximum of a tenner per person. They are very, very useful.
There is a template from the ICO.

There are exceptions to access

Where the practice of social work would otherwise be prejudiced because access to the information would be likely to result in serious harm to the person requesting the information or some other person;

Where the person is incapable of managing his or her affairs (for example where the person is a child) and the information was given in the expectation that it would not be disclosed or is information which the subject of the information expressly indicated should not be disclosed; 

Also access can be refused if:
To disclose the information would involve disclosure of information about someone else without that person’s consent and disclosure cannot be justified without that person’s consent; or where disclosure may prevent the detection or investigation of a crime.

Access can also be refused if an identical or similar request has been received from the same person and already been complied with, unless a reasonable interval has elapsed.

These exceptions do not permit the total withholding of information but only those sections of the material covered by the exceptions. The remainder of the case records should be made available to the service user.

However

The exceptions do not apply where disclosure is required by a Court Order or is necessary for the purpose of or in connection with any legal proceedings. 

In addition, a Court may prevent disclosure of information where a person shows that he or she would be caused serious harm to his physical or mental health by the disclosure.

  

Could Family court cause PTSD

 Post Traumatic Stress Disorder 

Family breakdown is up at the top of the list alongside bereavement  on major causes of stress.The court process , especially if it involves Children's Services does not lessen this stress one iota. It would be completely normal to feel stressed at this time but the feelings should lessen over time. If they persist could it be post traumatic stress disorder, commonly shortened to PTSD?

 Common causes of PTSD include:

• War
• Major disaster
• Rape,emotional or physical abuse
• A threatening, uncontrollable situation
• A serious accident

Basically speaking any situation where a person feels very out of control  , their lives or loved ones were in danger or they feel hopeless. 

The trauma could be a single event or a series of events taking place over months or years. It can affect adults or children

Symptoms

One of the most common symptoms of PTSD is
having repeated and intrusive distressing memories
of the event. There may also be a feeling of
reliving (or ‘re-experiencing’) the event through
‘flashbacks’ or nightmares, which can be very
distressing .
Some PTSD sufferers will avoid trigger situations and will also try not to think about the event, others will over think and relive the event constantly. Some will forget significant parts of the event.

PTSD causes a mixed bag of emotions, highs ,lows,anger,guilt,shame . The "what if's and "they should have" or "I should have" and "why me's" will also dominate the mind at times.

It would also be normal to be anxious and irritable and suffer sleep problems as well.

Depression and anxiety can also develop. There may be an increased tendency to self medicate with alcohol or recreational drugs. 

So can going through family court cause PTSD?

In my opinion yes. Family breakdown ticks the PTSD boxes, it is an out of control situation,it threatens safety of loved ones and it causes major trauma. In the case of care proceedings, I would suspect that a considerable percentage of  children and parents may already have PTSD before hand due to domestic violence or living in chaotic situations. The current system is going to exacerbate rather than help any symptoms.Is this good for the long term welfare of the child? 

Welfare Check List . A quick guide

The Welfare Check list - section 1 Children Act 1989
When a court considers any question relating to the upbringing of a child under the Children Act 1989 it must have regard to the welfare check list set out in Section 1 of that Act. Among the things the court must consider are:
a) The ascertainable wishes and feelings of the child concerned (considered in light of his age and understanding);
b) His physical, emotional and/or educational needs;
c) The likely effect on him of any change in his circumstances;
d) His age, sex, background and any characteristics of his, which the court considers relevant;
e) Any harm which he has suffered or is at risk of suffering;
f) How capable each of his parents and any other person in relation to whom the court considers the question to be relevant, is of meeting his needs;
g) The range of powers available to the court under the Children Act 1989 in the proceedings in question.
For all proceedings under the Children Act 1989 when the court considers a question of the child's upbringing the child's welfare is the court's paramount consideration.
 The most important consideration is your child’s welfare. This is about trying to decide, sometimes in difficult circumstances, what is in your child’s best interests.
The law makes it clear that the court must only make an order if doing that is better for your child than making no order at all.
The court must also avoid any delay, where possible. It is generally agreed that delaying a decision is not usually good for children and can sometimes cause them harm. The court should take account of any impact their timetable might have on your child’s welfare and development. 

Other Considerations

Your child’s wishes and feelings
This does not mean that the court will do whatever your child says they want. But if your child is old enough to understand the questions they are asked and the court (with the help of a Family Court Advisor if necessary ) can find out what they think, then it will consider their wishes. The court will want to know that your child’s wishes and feelings are their own and have not been influenced by either of their parents or other relatives. The court will pay more attention to the wishes and feelings of a child the older they are.  Increasingly, the court may want to meet your child, or get a letter from them giving their views. The President of the Family Division said in  Annual Dinner of the Family Law Bar Association on Friday 27 February 2015 at the Middle Temple that children need to be more visible in the family justice system . Given this hopefully  even more account will be given to children's views in future.

 http://www.familylaw.co.uk/news_and_comment/the-president-s-address-at-the-annual-dinner-of-the-family-law-bar-association#.VPRMAHysVPc

Your child’s physical, emotional and educational needs 

This includes your child’s need for  non conditional love and affection. Are the children attending and thriving at school or nursery? Do they have a reasonable mixed diet? Is their home safe and clean? Do they have opportunities to socialise with their peers or are they isolated. It also includes things that can affect your child’s emotional well being. So if, for example, your proposals involve separating one child from siblings, the court will consider how this will impact on their emotional needs. If you and your ex argue  in front of your children, that will be taken into account
The likely effect of any change in circumstances on your child
Change can be disruptive for children so the court will want to think about the effect on your child of any change you are suggesting, for example, in where they live or who they live or spend time with. Does the benefit of any change outweigh any possible negative effects?

The age, sex, background and any relevant characteristics of your childsuch as  any cultural, religious or language needs as well as any disabilities.

Weight needs to be given to the long term welfare of a child's sense of who they are and how they fit in to a particular community.

Any harm your child has suffered or is at risk of suffering

Harm can mean ill treatment or damage to your child’s health or development, the impact caused by them seeing or hearing domestic violence or abuse or by preventing contact without a good reason. Any drug ,gambling or alcohol addiction and the consequent impact on the children. Do you have needs yourself , that impact on your ability to parent? Do you require support over mental health issues for instance?
How capable you and the child’s other parent are of meeting your child’s needs. Do you have a support network ?
Do you have the skills to look after your child and meet their needs?
Are you an emotionally mature individual who can put your child's needs above your own? That could mean can you put the ill feelings about the other parent to one side.
This is not an exact guide but hopefully provides food for thought. The most important guideline is that the welfare of the child comes first so if you can put yourself and your understandable pain on the back burner it will assist your case in court.

 Three O'Clock in the morning wake up call?

I wonder if as well  as, the known surge in the use of electricity at the advert  break in between popular TV programmes there is a similar surge at 3 am in the morning. Is that not the time that you ping awake thinking all those thoughts that you haven't had time to think in the day?

I know how difficult and stressful family breakdown is and your quality of sleep is very likely to suffer.

Some monks actually start their day at 3am , but as you are reading a family blog, I think I can safe fully assume that you are not a monk! 

So you lie there with your head going around like a washing machine on spin cycle. The more you try the worst it gets and you start counting the hours to the alarm. I used to do this regularly, but not so much any more even when I am to face a gruelling day in court.

I am no guru , I just want to share a few tips that worked for me.

Good bedtime routine The old ones are the good ones. Milky drinks and reading works .Alcohol will get you to sleep but it may wake you up as the alcohol level in your body drops. Computer screens ,mobile phones keep you wide awake. Eating is not a good idea either . So getting to bed relaxed starts the night off right. I also keep a notepad by the bed and if there is any unfinished business bothering me it is written down and parked there for the night.

However if you still wake up at 3am , don't lie there no matter how snug you are, you are likely to be still wide awake a couple of hours later. Get up and do something different, read, put the radio, but not TV on, do not go back until your tired. If you still do not go back to sleep  within 20 minutes drag yourself out again and repeat the process.  Keeping a sleep log helps you chart your progress so you don't lose hope and fall back into bad sleep habits. Eventually over days ,perhaps weeks you retrain your body and you don't have to get up hardly ever. 

On the odd occasions that I do ping awake, I use these tools and I soon back in dreamland.

This post on PTSD may also be useful:

http://bit.ly/1AehNSD

Court diversification and sustainability survey

Special Guardianship Orders

 Better or worse than fostering?


 Special Guardianship addresses the needs of a significant group of children, who need a sense of stability and security within a placement away from their parents but not the absolute legal break with their birth family that is associated with adoption. It can also provide an alternative for achieving permanence in families where adoption, for cultural or religious reasons, is not an option.

The following persons may apply:

Any guardian of the child;
A local authority foster carer with whom the child has lived for one year immediately preceding the application;
Anyone who is named in a Child Arrangements Order as a person with whom the child is to live;
Anyone with whom the child has lived for 3 out of the last 5 years;
Where the child is subject of a Care Order, any person who has the consent of the local authority;
Anyone who has the consent of all those with Parental Responsibility for the child;
Anyone, including the child, who has the leave of the court to apply.
The parents of a child may not become the child’s Special Guardians.

Special Guardians will have Parental Responsibility for the child and although this will be shared with the child’s parents, the Special Guardian will have the legal right to make all arrangements for the child. The parents will still have to be consulted and their consent required to the child’s change of name, adoption, placement abroad for more than 3 months and any other such fundamental issues.Special Guardianship has the following advantages as a Permanence Plan:

The carers have Parental Responsibility and clear authority to make decisions on day to day issues regarding the child’s care;
There is added legal security to the Order in that leave is required for parents to apply to discharge the Order and will only be granted if a change of circumstances can be established since the original Order was made;
It maintains legal links to the birth family;
The child will no longer be Looked After and there need be no social worker involvement, therefore, unless this is identified as necessary, in which case an assessment of the need for support must be made by the relevant local authority.

pro's and con's

I have known it work  for grandparents, it is obviously so much cheaper for the local authority. I would not personally be happy as a parent for a foster carer to be granted an SGO but some may see it as a preferable solution to adoption.




Ma

Looked after reviews     

                                                                                        Looked After Reviews (also called a Statutory Reviews)are held at specified intervals in relation to all Looked After Children. Looked After Reviews are normally chaired by an Independent Reviewing Officer and are designed to ensure that adequate plans are in place to safeguard and promote the overall welfare of children; and to make recommendations, as necessary, for changes to those plans.
Looked After Reviews are convened at the following intervals:

Within twenty working days of the child becoming Looked After;

Then within three months of an initial looked after review;Then subsequent looked after reviews should be conducted not more than six months after any previous review.Reviews must take place sooner if the Independent Reviewing Officer (IRO) requests; the social worker's assessment is that the child's welfare is not being adequately safeguarded and promoted; a review would not otherwise occur before the child ceases to be detained in a YOI or secure training centre, or accommodated on remand; the authority proposes to cease to provide accommodation for a looked after child.

A parent can request a review if they believe the child's welfare is not being safeguarded.

The requirement to hold Looked After Reviews ends when the child ceases to be Looked After or when the local authority has authority to place for adoption, in which case there is a requirement to hold Adoption Reviews.

Who benefits from the "care" system

The cost of care in monetary terms anyway

Why do Children's Services not support families in need instead of pushing them through the care system?
"It costs too much"  to provide support is the old chestnut trotted out time again. So I thought I would have a dig around and see how much it actually costs to keep a child in care.

D. Cost of service provision

In the 2013/14 financial year an estimated £2.5 billion (gross expenditure) was spent on the main looked after children’s services in England. The majority of expenditure (55%) was on foster care services (around £1.4 billion, 55%) and children’s homes (around £0.9 billion, 36%). Table 4 shows the gross expenditure on the main looked after children’s services since 2000/01. Both the total expenditure and the cost per looked after child increased year- on-year until 2011/12. The changes in 2012/13 and 2013/14 should not be deemed conclusive since these figures are still provisional estimates.
Source Children in Care in England Statistics:2014

What it actually means 

The 2013/14 estimate  was that 905 millions would be spent on children's homes,1,377.3 millions on fostering services and 205.4 millions on other children looked after services.
The estimated average cost per looked after child was £36,524

Now I may be naive but even if each family had say 15 hours support a week at a cost of £8.40 per hour plus of course administration costs  so perhaps round it up to £10 per hour. Lets throw in some family therapy once a week at about £90 per session. So total cost £240 per week =£12480 a year.

I am aware that other families may have other needs that could be more complicated and therefore more expensive. However most families have more than one child taken into care so it could easily be not £36,524 per year but £73048 for two children and so on.
When the child leaves the "care" system is not the end of the story either they are far more likely to have mental health problems, an offending history...

So who is benefiting from the care system? 

SECTION 20 SURVEY

 Section 20 useful or misused?

In the latest statistics I could find "Children in Care Statistics" published in August 2014 as of the 13th March 2013 there were 18,190 children  accommodated under Section 20 of the 1989 Children Act.

There has been increasing concern that Children's Services are using this wrongly. I would like to know what is actually happening. Please would you take a minute to complete the simple survey so that an accurate picture can be obtained.

 Children's Mental Health Week

This caught my attention as children under the child protection radar are so more likely to have mental health issues as are those living in care. 

The link to Place2Be is here  https://www.place2be.org.uk/our-story/childrens-mental-health-week/

Mental health issues in my opinion anyway could possibly be the the last taboo. Poor mental well being although it may have a genetic link, is nothing to be ashamed of and is certainly not catching

Common causes of mental health problems:

Isolation and lack of a support network

Life events such as unemployment, bereavement, illness and abuse

Family history and upbringing including witnessing domestic violence as a child

Lack of personal resilience due to low self esteem, special needs and resistance to change

Experience of education and employment such as being bullied at school, lack of qualifications leading to limited work choices

Coping strategies

These can be positive or negative. The negative can provide short term relief but will not lead to long term improvement they include drinking alcohol , self harming, binge eating and taking drugs( including some prescription drugs)
Positive coping strategies include talking therapies, writing problems down , exercising, maintaining friendships. 

Getting help

This is a really difficult decision as whatever is supposed to happen there is no doubt that children are removed as a result of parents admitting to mental health problems in either themselves or their children. I must stress that it doesn't always happen and please don't delay getting help because of these worries. However there is help available that will not filter back to Children's Services , for instance MIND has an on line forum and in various parts of the country Stress Control Courses are run, normally you do not even give your name to join these. Alateen run support groups for 12-17 year olds affected by a family members drinking and it is also completely anonymous 

Another organisation who may offer help is Young Minds who provide a breakdown of mental health issues affecting children:

http://www.youngminds.org.uk/training_services/policy/mental_health_statistics

They run a parent helpline as well.