External research supported by Cafcass
Research supported by Cafcass
High quality research can help improve practice and policy within the family court system. If research projects are likely to benefit us and the children and families with whom we work, we support them through enabling access to our staff, case management data and, in some cases, children and families. We make sure that projects are conducted ethically, that there are appropriate safeguards in place to meet data protection requirements, and that no children or family members are identifiable within published research.
You can see a breakdown of projects that have been published or recently approved by Cafcass below. The list below also includes research previously undertaken by Cafcass.
Research project (completed) | Publication date |
The health needs of mothers and children in family court cases Dr Georgina Ireland, Dr Linda Wijlaars, Dr Matthew A Jay, Professor Ruth Gilbert et al (University College London) Access to Cafcass data | September 2024 |
Allison Wolfreys (The Open University) Contact with Cafcass staff | July 2024 |
Mothers in treatment for substance use: impacts on care proceedings Dr Martha Canfield (King’s College London) Access to Cafcass data | June 2024 |
Substituted parenting: what does this mean in the family court? Beth Tarleton (University of Bristol) Contact with Cafcass staff | June 2023 |
The Discharge of Care Orders – A National Study Dr Jo Staines (University of Bristol) Contact with Cafcass staff and access to Cafcass data. | May 2023 |
Mothers in recurrent care proceedings: New evidence for England and Wales Dr Bachar Alrouh et al (Lancaster University and Nuffield Family Justice Observatory) Approved access to Cafcass data via SAIL Databank | November 2022 |
Care proceedings and International Kinship Care Maria Wright (University of Bristol) Approved access to Cafcass case data | September 2022 |
Social work education and practice learning at a crossroads: challenges David Lane (Angela Ruskin University) Interviews with Cafcass Guardians | July 2022 |
Uncovering private family law: What can the data tell us about children’s participation? Dr Claire Hargreaves et al (Lancaster University and Nuffield Family Justice Observatory) Approved access to Cafcass data via SAIL Databank | June 2022 |
What do we know about ethnicity in the family justice system in England Dr Bachar Alrouh et al (Lancaster University and Nuffield Family Justice Observatory) Approved access to Cafcass data via SAIL Databank | May 2022 |
Alice Roe (Nuffield Family Justice Observatory) Approved access to Cafcass data via SAIL Databank | February 2022 |
Children subject to secure accommodation orders: A data review Alice Roe (Nuffield Family Justice Observatory) Approved access to Cafcass data via SAIL Databank | February 2022 |
Older children and young people in care proceedings in England and Wales Alice Roe (Nuffield Family Justice Observatory) Approved access to Cafcass data via SAIL Databank | October 2021 |
Newborn babies in urgent care proceedings in England and Wales Dr Rebecca Pattinson et al (Lancaster University and Nuffield Family Justice Observatory) Approved access to Cafcass data via SAIL Databank | June 2021 |
‘Up Against It’: Understanding Fathers’ repeat appearance in local authority care proceedings Dr Georgia Philip et al (University of East Anglia and Lancaster University) Approved access to Cafcass data and involvement of Cafcass staff at workshops | March 2021 |
Uncovering private family law: who’s coming to court in England? Dr Linda Cusworth et al (Lancaster University and Nuffield Family Justice Observatory) Approved access to Cafcass data via SAIL Databank | February 2021 |
The Clinical and legal management of parental alienation in the UK Dr Angela Morgan (University of Wolverhampton) Approved organisational response to survey | October 2020 |
Professor Penny Cooper and Dr Jessica Jacobson (Birkbeck University of London, ICPR) | August 2020 |
Ann Potter (University of Bristol) Approved interview with a Cafcass practitioner and a focus group with Cafcass practitioners. | April 2020 |
Professor Judith Harwin and Professor Karen Broadhurst (Lancaster University)
| March 2019 |
| September 2018 |
| Siblings, contact and the law: an overlooked relationship? Professor Daniel Monk (Birkbeck University) Approved interviews with Cafcass practitioners and a workshop with the FJYPB. | November 2018 |
Scoping data on infant pathways in care proceedings Professor Karen Broadhurst (Lancaster University) Approved use of anonymised case management data. | October 2018 |
The experience of Muslim children who are removed from home David Pitcher and Shabana Jaffar (Cafcass) Approved interviews with service users (children). | September 2018 |
Children and Families Across Borders (CFAB) Approved participation of Cafcass practitioners in focus groups. | September 2018 |
Outcomes for children before and after care proceedings reform Professor Judith Masson (Bristol University) and Professor Jonathan Dickens (UEA) Approved access to case management data. | June 2018 |
How intended parents handle their children’s heritage (surrogacy cases) Lilian Odze (Cafcass) Approved interviews with service users (adults). | March 2018 |
Adoption: A BASW UK Social Work Enquiry Professor Brid Featherstone (Huddersfield) and Dr Anna Gupta (Royal Holloway) Approved focus group with Cafcass practitioners. | January 2018 |
Creating paths to family justice Professor Anne Barlow et al. (Exeter University) Approved participation of Cafcass staff in workshops and discussions with the FJYPB. | October 2017 |
Professors Karen Broadhurst (Lancaster University) and Ruth Gilbert (UCL) Approved access to case management data. | October 2017 |
Vulnerable birth mothers and recurrent care proceedings Professor Karen Broadhurst and Professor Approved access to case management data. | October 2017 |
Parents who lack litigation capacity in care proceedings Professor Penelope Welbourne (Plymouth University) Approved interviews with Cafcass practitioners. | September 2017 |
Exploring the provision of inter–parental relationship support Fatima Husain and Ruth Hudson (NatCen) Approved interviews with Cafcass staff. | April 2017 |
Transparency and the Publication of Family Court Judgements
| 2016 |
Ruth Barnes (Coram Children’s Legal Centre) Approved focus group with FJYPB. | December 2016 |
Follow-up study of outcomes of the Tri-borough Care Proceedings Pilot Professor Jonathan Dickens, Dr Chris Beckett, Sue Bailey (University of East Anglia) Approved access to case management data. | November 2016 |
After FDAC: outcomes 5 years later Professor Karen Broadhurst and Professor Judith Harwin (Lancaster University) Approved access to case management data. | September 2016 |
Conflicts of EU courts on child abduction Professor Paul Beaumont (University of Aberdeen) Approved interviews with Cafcass practitioners. | August 2016 |
Care planning and the role of the Independent Reviewing Officer Professor Jonathan Dickens et al. (University of East Anglia) | October 2015 |
How do county courts share the care of children between parents? Dr Maebh Harding (University of Warwick) and Dr Annika Newnham (University of Reading) | May 2015 |
Enforcing contact orders: problem-solving or punishment? Professor Liz Trinder et al. (University of Exeter) Approved access to case management data. | December 2013 |
Research project (ongoing) | Project start date |
Vibeke Samsonsen (Western Norway University of Applied Sciences) Contact with Cafcass staff | 2022 |
The Family Justice Response to allegations of domestic abuse: a comparative European analysis Professor Shazia Choudhry (University of Oxford) Contact with Cafcass staff | 2022 |
Investigating the impact of family drug and alcohol courts (FDAC) on parental offending Professor Judith Harwin (Lancaster University) Access to Cafcass data | 2021 |
Virtual and On-site Interpreting in Court Environments (VOICE): Assessing the impact of Covid-19 (pilot study) Professor Sabine Braun (University of Surrey) Contact with Cafcass staff | 2021 |
An Exploration of Children’s Experiences and Involvement in Private Family Court Proceedings | 2020 |
Use of skype technology in direct observations of Stage 2 trainee practice educators
| 2019 |
Using Parenting Plans to Reduce Conflict in the Family Courts Charles Kenyon (PhD – University of Lincoln) | 2019 |
Investigating the reasons for the rise in care order applications Dr Lauren Devine (Aston University) Access to Cafcass data | 2017 |
Research carried out by Cafcass | Project start date |
Private law cases that return to court This study explores the scale and patterns of private law cases that come back to court, and considers why these cases return. It includes reporting data on 40,599 private law applications received by Cafcass in 2016-17, and detailed analysis of 100 returning cases. | 2017 |
Learning from Cafcass submissions to Serious Case Reviews - June 2017 This report follows similar previous studies about the learning derived from Cafcass submissions to Serious Case Reviews (SCRs) in 2016, looking into the children and families involved, the serious incident, the risks known at the time the case was open to Cafcass, and practice learning. It also analyses data from 97 submissions to SCRs between 2009-2016 to identify themes across the larger number of cases, including: how and when children suffer fatal/serious maltreatment; the prevalence of domestic abuse; who perpetrated the serious incidents and how this related to identified risks during proceedings. | 2017 |
Allegations of domestic abuse in child contact cases A small-scale study undertaken with Women’s Aid to look at domestic abuse allegations in 216 private law applications for contact. This features both quantitative and qualitative findings. All data collection and analysis was conducted by Cafcass; Women’s Aid contributed advice on the methodology and gave comment on the final report. | 2017 |
Study of data held by Cafcass in cases featuring trafficking as a 'child need' This study looks at 82 cases concerning 97 children, where Cafcass Family Court Advisers had identified trafficking as a concern within the case. This version has been created for the purpose of sharing with external agencies and partners, and case examples have been anonymised. | 2017 |
Study of data held by Cafcass in cases featuring radicalisation concerns This small-scale study looked at 54 cases in which Cafcass practitioners had identified evidence, risk or an allegation of radicalisation, with data collected in January 2016. It also draws on the expertise of Cafcass’ child exploitation ambassadors and champions. This version has been created for the purpose of sharing with external agencies and partners, and case examples have been anonymised. | 2016 |
This is the report into the third annual national survey carried out by Cafcass. Like the previous two surveys, it is based on a sample of parents’ views about private law cases. Unlike the previous surveys it seeks principally to explore ‘what happened next’, inquiring into how arrangements made at court have worked out for parents and their children six to nine months after the conclusion of proceedings. | 2016 |
Study into Cafcass’ role at First Hearing Dispute Resolution Appointments This report presents the findings of a study which aimed to investigate to what extent Cafcass Family Court Advisers (FCAs) were meeting the expectations set out in the Child Arrangements Programme (CAP) in relation to First Hearing Dispute Resolution Appointments (FHDRAs). The study consisted of: a survey of Family Court Advisers in respect of 300 FHDRAs; interviews with a small sample of FCAs; and interviews with a small sample of judges and one legal adviser. | 2016 |
Learning from Cafcass Submissions to Serious Case Reviews (2015) This report follows similar studies in 2013 and 2014 about the learning derived from Cafcass submissions to Serious Case Reviews (SCRs). This study seeks to build on the previous ones by presenting data around three broad areas: children and families; index incidents and risk; and practice. The study also enquires separately into cases where child sexual exploitation was a feature. | 2015 |
Case file review of special guardianship orders This qualitative case file review contributed to the Department for Education review of special guardianship orders. The core purpose of the study was to describe what was known about the families and special guardians, and the assessment process for such orders. | 2015 |
Cafcass study into Parental Order applications made in 2013-14 In order to become their child’s legal parents in the UK, parents of children born through a surrogacy arrangement (‘commissioning couples’) are required to apply to the family court for a Parental Order. This descriptive study provides information derived from Cafcass data on applications for Parental Orders made in April 2013 – March 2014. | 2015 |
Study of child and adolescent mental health This small-scale study was commissioned by the Cafcass Chief Executive to identify the prevalence and nature of child mental health concerns raised in Cafcass cases; to identify the services received by the children and young people; and to consider the policy implications. | 2015 |
Report of an analysis of rule 16.4 appointments considered by the courts in September 2014 This research study aims to provide an understanding of the nature and extent of rule 16.4 appointments across Cafcass, in the context of the new Child Arrangements Programme (CAP). | 2014 |
Three weeks in November...five years on This study captured the views of 304 guardians on the decisions of local authorities in care applications received by Cafcass during a three week period in November 2013. It follows studies of the same format carried out in 2012 and 2009. | 2014 |
Learning from Cafcass’ submissions to IMRs This report follows a similar study published in 2013, about the learning derived from Cafcass submissions to Serious Case Reviews (SCRs). The study also inquires separately into cases where child sexual exploitation was a feature. | 2014 |