Newborn Babies In Care Proceedings
In her latest blog, Family Law Solicitor Melissa Knight discusses newborn babies in care proceedings….
Having a new baby should be one of the most wonderful experiences for a parent. If the local authority has concerns and your unborn child is subject to a child protection plan or the PLO process it can be very stressful and upsetting if there is a chance that the local authority is planning to make an application to remove the child from your care at birth. Removing a child from their parents is one of the most serious interventions from a legal, ethical and procedural aspect.
The Nuffield Family Justice Observatory chaired by the former head of the Family Court, Sir James Munby, has recently published some research about the increasing number of newborn babies being removed at birth and the need for urgent court hearings when babies are born. The research is based on eight years of data in respect of over 21,000 babies across England and Wales. Some of their main findings are summarised as follows:
a. There are more applications by local authorities to remove newborn babies into care at birth
b. These sorts of applications often require urgent hearings on the same day or with little notice
c. In England, the number of newborn babies in care proceedings has increased from 2,425 in 2012/13 to 2,914 in 2019/2020. Newborn babies accounted for over half of children subject to care proceedings in 2019/20
d. In the North-East of England there is a significant rise of new born babies being taken into care (rising from 34 per 10,000 live births in 2012/2013 to 81.3 per 10,000 in 2019/2020). 41% of these applications were made on the same day that the baby is born
e. In London, there were far less applications to remove newborn babies into care. The statistics show that 24.9 newborn babies per 10,000 live births in 2019/20 were removed into care and less than 10% of these were same day applications to court
f. Quite often, families that have had children removed previously go on to have further children removed from their care as a result of family court proceedings
One of the main problems is that hospitals are not able to keep Mother’s and their newborns in hospital for very long if the child and mother are fit for discharge as they require the beds for other patients. This means that a Court decision about the plan for the child needs to be made very urgently in the event the plan is not agreed. Mother’s are often called to Court hours after given birth when they feel emotionally and physically drained and may be in pain as a result of the birth. In addition, this gives very little time for parents to instruct lawyers if not done so already and for a child’s guardian to be appointed. Professor Karen Broadhurst, one of the main authors of the research highlights that this raises questions about the fair participation in court hearings relating to newborn babies.
Can Newborn Mothers Be Better Supported?
The research looks at how vulnerable mothers and babies can be better supported to stay together where it is safe to do so and what can be done to ensure that parents can participate fairly in interim hearings when it is being proposed that the children cannot remain in their care. The aim of the Nuffield Family Justice Observatory following this research is to support professionals including social workers, midwifes, family support workers, lawyers and judges to respond to the increasing number of babies being removed at birth by exploring what type of support can be offered at pre-birth and post-birth. As a result of the findings, the judiciary wish to explore further about why there is such a stark difference across the regions and are looking at developing good practice guidelines for all professionals involved in the removal of a newborn baby from their mother at birth.
Under English law, the local authority cannot make any Court application in respect of a child until that baby is born therefore quite often court applications are made on the same day that the baby is born leading to urgent court hearings without notice or with very short notice. For a mother who has just given birth, this can be extremely distressing and the research has stressed that it is vital for proper planning to be implemented to ensure that the process is as fair as possible and that where possible, decisions are made about the child’s plan and are communicated to parents in a timely manner. Whilst inevitably, there are some cases where removal of a new baby is necessary and proportionate when there is a safeguarding risk, there are some scenarios where insufficient planning is an issue and it is very important that alternative options are considered such as family members, mother and baby foster placements and residential placements. These options must be explored at the earliest opportunity.
Some local authorities have funding and services in place to ensure that the right level of support is being provided to parents before the child is born to ensure that all efforts are made to keep the child with its birth family. For example, Staffordshire County Council have teams called Breathing Space and the Intensive Family Support Services who work with vulnerable babies on an intensive basis. They offer support to young people who are currently in care and pregnant with their first child or parents who have had previous children removed. Breathing Space offers one to one support which focuses on the practical elements of parenting, the emotional needs of a baby and support young parents to access community groups to help develop their confidence. The Intensive Family Support Service work with families whose primary issue in parental substance misuse with a view to carrying out strength-based work to empower positive change and keep families together safely, whenever possible. The research shows that such intensive family support can prove successful.
Furthermore, the report highlights that it is crucial that parents are able to access legal representation during the PLO process or during court proceedings and are encouraged to do so as soon as possible. It is also very important CAFCASS are provided with early notification in order for a children’s guardian to be appointed.
Are you a parent who is expecting a new born baby whereby there is social work involvement? If so, feel free to get in touch if you require further support in respect of representation at PLO meetings or court proceedings. I can be contacted on 01283 561531 or via email at m.knight@timms-law.com.
Melissa Knight
June 2021