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Contents

1. Starting Care Proceedings
2. After the Issue of Care Proceedings
3. Format of Care Plans Filed in Care Proceedings
4. Correspondence During Court Proceedings

1. Starting Care Proceedings

Before a decision can be made to initiate Care Proceedings, a Legal Planning Meeting should be held.

The social worker must obtain the approval of the Designated Manager (Care Proceedings) to hold a Legal Planning Meeting and, once approval has been given, should send an initial referral for a Legal Planning Meeting to the Legal Services Division.

The referral will confirm that the convening of the Legal Planning Meeting has been authorised by the Designated Manager and identify whether the meeting is to be chaired by the Designated Manager or the social worker's Operational Manager.

The initial referral will be accompanied by a Core Assessment (if available), a social work chronology, family genogram, minutes of a Family Group Conference, if available, and any agency report that is relevant to the child's circumstances.

On receipt of the referral, the Paralegal Team in the Legal Services Division will confirm a time and date for the Legal Planning Meeting to take place.

After the meeting, the solicitor will send a memorandum to the child's social worker, Operational Manager and Designated Manager summarising the discussions and decisions of the Legal Planning Meeting and confirming the timescales for the agreed plan of action confirmed by the meeting.

The minutes of the Legal Planning Meeting, which will be recorded on a Pro Forma, will be taken by a member of staff in Children's Social Care and will detail the following issues:

1. Whether the solicitor considers the Threshold Criteria for Care Proceedings are met
2. Whether the No Order principle would be overcome
3. Identification of Action Points

The minutes will be signed off by the Designated Manager (Care Proceedings) after the meeting.

If it is determined that the Threshold Criteria are established and the Public Law Outline is to be invoked, then the child's social worker will, within 3 days of the Legal Planning Meeting:

1. Start a Core Assessment (if this is not already available or being prepared)
2. Refer the case for a Family Group Conference
3. Identify an appropriate expert/assessment centre, if required.

It is then expected that, within 7 days of the Legal Planning Meeting the child's social worker will prepare the first draft of the 'Notice of Intention to Issue Care Proceedings' letter for approval by the Legal Services Division. The solicitor who attended the Legal Planning Meeting should approve the draft for signature by the social worker and the Designated Manager (Care Proceedings) or his/her nominated manager.

If it is necessary for an expert/family centre assessment to be undertaken, approval will be sought for this by the social worker from the High Cost Placement Panel - for details of how to do this, see the High Cost Placement Panel Terms of Reference and Procedure. If approval is given, the social worker should send to the solicitor the background information and questions to be addressed by the expert/assessment centre. The allocated solicitor will include the background information and questions within the standard letter of instruction format for expert assessments as currently approved by the courts.

The Operational Manager will ensure that, within 35 days of the Legal Planning Meeting, the approved and signed Core Assessment and minutes/comprehensive details of the outcome of the Family Group Conference are passed to the Legal Services Division.

If the Family Group Conference identifies that kinship assessments should be undertaken, the child's social worker will provide questions for inclusion in a letter of instruction and the solicitor will draft the letter of instruction in the format approved by the courts.

It is expected that after the Core Assessment and all the assessments have been received by the child's social worker, he or she will convene a meeting with the Operational Manager and Designated Manager (Care Proceedings) to decide whether Care Proceedings are to be pursued. Minutes of this meeting will be recorded, signed off by the Designated Manager and a copy provided to the allocated solicitor.

If the outcome is that Care Proceedings are required to protect the child, the child's social worker will contact the Paralegal Team in Legal Services Division to confirm a date and time for the Review Legal Planning Meeting. The child's social worker will provide to the allocated solicitor copies of all assessments and minutes of meetings which have taken place since the first Legal Planning Meeting.

At the conclusion of the Review Legal Planning Meeting, the allocated solicitor will send a memorandum to the child's social worker, Operational Manager and Designated Manager (Care Proceedings) summarising the discussion and decisions of the meeting and setting out the agreed timescale for preparing evidence to support the local authority's application for a Care Order.

Once the decision to issue has been agreed, the Designated Manager (Care Proceedings) will confirm to the Legal Services Division his authority to issue care proceedings and the social worker will forward a draft statement and care plan to the allocated solicitor.

If Care Proceedings are authorised, the child's social worker will write to the parents' solicitor to confirm that Care Proceedings will be initiated forthwith and invite them to a meeting in advance of the issue of the proceedings to ascertain whether Alternative Dispute Resolution is possible in this instance.

If the meeting is rejected by the parents' solicitor or if a resolution which ensures the safety of the child cannot be agreed, the Legal Services Division will initiate Care Proceedings and obtain the date for an initial court hearing in Croydon Family Proceedings Court.

2. After the Issue of Care Proceedings

It is essential that the social worker and the local authority solicitor have regular contact during the course of the proceedings, and that the progress of the case is kept under constant review. The local authority solicitor will advise the court of the name of the Independent Reviewing Officer and their contact details.

This will include discussion of any disclosure issues, which may need to be the subject of directions by the Court. 

The Public Law Outline checklist will become a running document and completion of the Checklist will require regular liaison between the social worker, local authority solicitor and barrister (if instructed) during the course of the proceedings.

In addition the social worker must keep the local authority solicitor and Children's Guardian up to date with any changes in relation to the child during the proceedings, for example, placement, contact, school/education, health.

Arrangements must not be made for any change to the child's placement without prior consultation with the Children's Guardian.

3. Format of Care Plans Filed in Care Proceedings

The format of the Interim Care Plan and Final Care Plan, which must be exhibited to the social worker's Statement in Care Proceedings, should follow the headings set out in the Model Care Plan.

• Overall aim
• Child's needs including contact
• Views of others
• Placement details and timetable
• Management and support by local authority.

There must be a separate Care Plan for each child.

Where adoption is part of the Care Plan either as the preferred or contingency plan, legal advice should be sought as to the need for and timing of a Placement Order application - see also the Placement for Adoption Procedure which sets out the additional approval required before a Placement Order application can be made.

The social worker and his/her manager must sign the Interim Care Plan. In addition the Designated Manager (All Care Plans) must sign the Final Care Plan.

4. Correspondence During Court Proceedings

All correspondence received from solicitors for other parties during court proceedings must be passed to the Legal Services Division to deal with.

Where the Legal Services Division receives correspondence during court proceedings and require the social worker's instructions for the reply, the letter will be faxed to the social worker immediately upon its receipt and the social worker must give clear instructions to the solicitors as to the reply as soon as practicable.

In relation to any other contentious correspondence, including letters received from an expert received during court proceedings, the social worker must send the letter to Legal Services Division as soon as possible, together with detailed instructions for the reply.

End