Acting for parents at the edge of care proceedings: The ... · Acting for parents at the edge of care proceedings: The level 2 playing field ... goes to court 19 ... care proceedings

Acting for parents at the edge of care

proceedings:

The level 2 playing field

Judith Masson

Professor of Socio-legal Studies

Bristol University

Pre-proceedings: a brief introduction

• Procedure set out (briefly) in DCSF Children Act 1989 Guidance, vol 1 (2008) paras 3.3-4,3.23-3.33 being revised

• Introduced with PLO 2008

• Simple process: letter +lawyer for parents + meeting =PPP

• Aims:

– Diversion by improved parenting or agreed alternate care

– Engage parents so have lawyer for proceedings

– Narrow the issues in dispute in proceedings

– Speed up care proceedings (to meet PLO 40 week target)

• It works to divert cases: no s.31 proceedings in 24% of PPP

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A level 2 playing field ALC Manchester November 2013


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Local authority thinking about the PPP

• A ‘step up’ most children have protection plan

• ‘Another step’ avoiding a rush into proceedings

• An opportunity for parents to demonstrate change

• A way to be fair to parents important to SW too

• A better way of working at the edge of care

• Lawyers help parents to understand our concerns

• Time for work not constrained by 26 weeks

• Control by court is less direct but not completely absent

• A time to collect evidence for proceedings FJB view?

• Space to prepare applications and statements

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What do lawyers think about the PPP?

5 A level 2 playing field ALC Manchester

November 2013

What do lawyers think about the PPP?

• ‘The fee is a joke’

• ‘A loss leader’

• Not worth my time – send the paralegal!

• ‘Its better for parents to get into court’

• Children’s services want parents to have a lawyer

• Does help parents to understand the concerns

• It helps me to work with/ for my client

• Some clients have avoided court

• Avoiding court can be better for some clients

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What do parents think about the PPP?

• Positives:

– The letter is a shock

– The meeting can be scary

– Being represented helps

• Understanding : what; why and the consequences

• Confidence: Reassurance; and Restraint

• Empowerment: Treated better by local authority

– Overall: I can do something

• Some negative views

– Make no difference

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The Letter Before Proceedings

• A shock

• Hard-hitting

... it throws you ... it’s just so formal, it’s like ‘how to avoid court’. So when you first see

that, you’re like ‘woah, what’s going on?’

... once I started reading this letter I started thinking ‘oh my god, you’re putting all this in there’, and it really shocked me


November 2013

The meeting

Parents were very aware of the seriousness of the meeting and the risks of saying the wrong thing, or losing control

... it felt horrible ... Because it was a legal meeting I suppose, and I suppose because I knew what the next step up was ... The core group meetings are just like family member and midwife and that, and they’re all right, they’re not very intimidating – but this one, I was worried about this one


November 2013

Being represented ….

... you know that everyone in the room is against you ... and when you’ve got your solicitor with you, you know they’re the only person who’s 100% backing you up, so it helps you

this is why I feel confident now because if they haven’t got back to me by next week I am going to call my solicitor and say what is going on, and if my solicitor weren’t involved I wouldn’t have a voice


November 2013

Reassures, encourages and empowers…

... [My lawyer] makes me feel a lot better about everything. She’s like, you know, ‘this is something we could fight, you have got a good chance of beating them’. And she’s sort of ‘don’t give up, go in there with your head held high’, this, that and the other – she’s really nice, yeah

... she said, ‘Providing you stick to what they put down in the agreement when you sign it, then it is not going to go any

further’


November 2013

Restraint…

He helped me stay calm, and if I was rambling on, you know, when you talk about it more you get angry and he was like ‘calm down’...

I just wanted him to be there, I am quite outspoken anyway, it’s just to make sure I don’t start going off on one


November 2013


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silent solicitors

He never said nothing (laughs), he was just sitting there. No, but he did a good job of just turning up... ...I am happy the solicitor is involved now ... because before I was scared, I didn’t know what to do with them, I was just getting bullied – like gangs in school, every day you get bullied, but now your big brother is in school, you got confidence and the bullies ain’t going to come next to you no more, because they know you have got your brother there – and that’s my solicitor. So I feel that, yeah, I feel all right now...

Not a panacea

Some things I don’t agree with, but I feel pushed to go along with it, because in the past I have said I don’t agree with something and then it has been, ‘Okay then, we will just go to court’ – so now I keep my mouth quiet about things I don’t agree with, I just go along with it


November 2013

She just didn’t open her mouth. It was pointless her being there

Does the process work?

• Some parents obtain legal advice

– 6200 legal aid bills 2009-2010;

– 85% invited attended ; 59% fathers

• Some cases are diverted from care proceedings

– 24% : 60% improved care; 40% alternative care

• In study cases not completed more quickly

– Court practice did not change in response to PPP

– Delay in some applications to court if PPP not monitored

• Process is not end in itself

– Means to engage, re-engage parents


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How the PPP works see Family Law, November 2013

‘wake up’ call ‘final opportunity’ ‘Fairness’

CLEAR COMMUNICATION of CONCERNS

A step up from CP Plan another step towards court

LAWYER provides ADVICE, EXPLANATIONS, PARTISAN SUPPORT

EMPOWERS PARENT, ENCOURAGES ENGAGEMENT

lawyer as catalyst for change Foundation for partnership

LEADS TO AGREEMENT On

services, behaviour, substitute care, assessment

Parent complies (or not)


November 2013

Issues in pre-proceedings

• Use of paralegals

• Acting for Dads

• Assessments within the pre-proceedings process

• Use of s.20

• Family and friends carers

• Delays in the pre-proceedings process


November 2013


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Paralegals

... [The trainee] was just supporting me. She kept asking me if I was all right. Do I need to go out of the room? I need more time to think about this, it’s a big decision. She understands me more, not like [solicitor], he’s a donut, he doesn’t know what he is talking about

There are some things that I really feel that I can’t deal with and [my lawyer] can step in, or if there’s things that I don’t know about – because obviously lawyers know best, know what is going on...

Paralegals

• Can do this work if:

– Have parent’s trust

– Know enough about LA practice

– Have authority to deal with LA effectively

– May need support/ training to do it well

– Same person should attend review PPP

– Should have some continued involvement if case goes to court


November 2013

Acting for Dads

• Dads only qualify for L2 legal aid if have PR BUT if got a letter could get representation

• LAs sent fewer letters to Dads ; ie separated dads

• Dads not always contacted/ engaged by social workers

• Dads who were sent letter less likely to attend than mums

• Dads may contribute to child protection concerns

• Dads and paternal relatives may be part of the solution to child protection concerns

• See C. Ashley et al Fathers Matter, esp Vol 3 Working with Risky Fathers FRG (www.FRG.org.uk)


November 2013

http://www.frg.org.uk/

Assessment

• PPP used by some LAs to engage parents in assessment

• Pre-birth assessment

– To identify support needs at birth

– and how these can be met

– Proceedings are not inevitable

• External assessments

– Opportunity to contribute to letter of instruction

• PLO

– If parents do not co-operate not clear what further opportunities

– Lack of co-operation itself provides information

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s.20

• Concerns:

• When is use of s.20 better than a court application for parents?

• When is use of s.20 better than a court application for children?


November 2013

Family and friends care

• PPP opportunity to identify potential relative carers

• Allows timely assessment

• May avoid temporary care with strangers

• Relatives sometimes attend PPM with parent

– Especially potential carers; especially for young teen parents

• Importance of clarity in relative carer’s role

– Support from LA

– Legal status

– Status in legal proceedings


November 2013

Delays in the PPP

• Has been failure to monitor some cases in PPP

• LAs have to balance urgency of all cases where intend court

• Demands of new PLO are very substantial

– Balance readiness with timeliness

– Some cases a crisis will precipitate court action


November 2013

Conclusion

• A last chance

• Not ‘just a process’

• A just process

– delivering rights

– Helping to create partnership

– Leading to service use….and change?

• But only if LAs send letters + parents seek and find legal representation

A level 2 playing field ALC Manchester

November 2013 25

References

Masson et al (2013) Partnership by Law? The pre-proceedings process for families on the edge of care proceedings and summary

http://www.bristol.ac.uk/law/research/researchpublications/2013/partnershipbylaw.pdf

http://www.bris.ac.uk/law/research/researchpublications/2013/summary.pdf

Masson and Dickens (2013) ‘Care proceedings reform: the future of the pre-proceedings process’ [2013] Family Law 1413

Masson and Dickens (2013) ‘The operation and effect of the pre-proceedings process – what do lawyers need to know?’ Family Law Week

http://www.familylawweek.co.uk/site.aspx?i=ed114447

Munby P (2013) A view from the President’s Chamber

http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/Resources/JCO/Documents/Reports/pfd-process-reform-revised-plo-may-2013.pdf

Pearce et al (2011) Just Following Instructions? The representation of parents in care proceedings

http://www.bristol.ac.uk/law/research/researchpublications/

DCSF (2008) Children Act 1989, Guidance, and Regulations Vol 1 Court Orders


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http://www.bristol.ac.uk/law/research/researchpublications/2013/partnershipbylaw.pdf

http://www.bris.ac.uk/law/research/researchpublications/2013/summary.pdf

http://www.familylawweek.co.uk/site.aspx?i=ed114447














http://www.bristol.ac.uk/law/research/researchpublications/