The court process

In all family law proceedings, the welfare and safety of the child is paramount in the mind of the judge and in their decision. It is a judge that decides what will happen to your child.  

The judge will listen to everyone involved in your child’s case before making a decision about what is in the best interests of your child. This includes evidence presented to the court by you and your solicitor, the local authority social worker and their solicitor, your child’s guardian and their solicitor. The court may also have the advice of other experts, like a psychiatrist, psychologist or paediatrician.  

The judge will weigh all the evidence and make a decision on ‘the balance of probabilities'. This means that the standard of proof for family law proceedings is met if the court is satisfied that an event (such as harm to a child caused by neglect or abuse) was more likely than not to have occurred or is likely to occur. It is then for the judge to decide the best arrangements to safeguard the welfare and safety of your child now and for the rest of their childhood. 

It is important for you to know that the final decision in around 30% of all applications for care orders results in the child staying with their birth parent(s) or being reunified with their birth parent(s) or going to live with a member of their wider family, such as a grandparent(s). When they go to live with a member of their wider family, this person can be known as a kinship foster carer or as a Special Guardian.  

There are a wide range of outcomes available to the court. These include: 

• The judge accepting the evidence that you have made the necessary changes and there is a good chance that you will sustain those changes so that you can care for your child and meet their needs in the long-term. In these circumstances it is likely that the judge will make no order and your child will continue to live with you or be returned to your care. 

• The judge accepting the evidence that you have made the necessary changes and there is a good chance that you will sustain those changes so that you can care for your child and meet their needs in the long-term, but you need the support of the local authority under a court order. In these circumstances it is likely that the judge will make a supervision order and your child will continue to live with you or be returned to your care. 

• The judge does not accept the evidence that you have made the necessary changes or made sufficient changes and/or is not convinced that you will be able to sustain the changes needed for you to care for your child safely and meet their needs in the long-term. The judge may, however, believe that a member of the child’s wider family can care safely for your child and meet their needs in the long-term. In these circumstances, it is likely that the judge will make a care order to the local authority if that family member wants to remain or become a kinship foster carer or invite that family member to make an application for a Special Guardianship Order for your child, which gives them parental responsibility.  

• The judge does not accept the evidence that you have made the necessary changes or made sufficient changes and/or is not convinced that you will be able to sustain the changes needed for you to care for your child safely and meet their needs in the long-term. If the judge does not believe that there is a member of the child’s wider family who can care safely for your child and meet their needs in the long-term, it is likely that the judge will make a care order to the local authority and your child will either remain in care or be taken into care. 

• If the judge makes a care order to the local authority and believes it would be in your child’s best interests to have a ‘forever family’ through adoption and it is possible that your child could be adopted, the judge might make a Placement Order. This gives the local authority the authority to search for suitable adopters, to match them to your child and place them with these prospective adopters. If things go well, the prospective adopters would make an application to the court for an adoption order at a later stage, supported by the local authority. An adoption order is the only order that removes parental responsibility from you. We advise that you speak to your solicitor if this is part of the local authority plan. 

You have the right to make an appeal against the decision of the court. It is important that you consult with your solicitor before deciding to appeal.