This chapter examines the legal mechanisms by which children can be provided with long-term alternative secure family placements: the law on adoption and special guardianship. Topics discussed include: decision-making in relation to adoption; adoption agencies’ role in assessing suitable adoptions; rules relating to parental consent in adoption cases; placement for adoption; applications to adopt; post adoption contact; revocation of adoption; and special guardianship orders.
Chapter
11. Adoption and special guardianship
Chapter
18. Care and Supervision
N V Lowe, G Douglas, E Hitchings, and R Taylor
The Children Act 1989 places considerable importance on local authorities working in partnership with families and the avoidance wherever possible of court proceedings. However, the Act also makes provision, in the form of care and supervision orders, for compulsory measures to be taken to safeguard and promote children’s welfare. This chapter focuses on care and supervision orders. It covers the initiation of proceedings; the threshold criteria, which refers to conditions set out by s 31(2) that must be satisfied before a care or supervision order may be made; the ‘welfare stage’, where the court must, pursuant to s 1(1), regard the welfare of the child as the paramount consideration; tackling delay in care proceedings; court orders; appeals; and discharge of care orders and discharge and variation of supervision orders. The chapter ends by discussing the position of children in local authority care, focusing on the critical issue of contact with children in care.
Chapter
Property disputes when non-formalised relationships breakdown
This chapter explores how the family finances are dealt with following the breakup between cohabitants in non-formal relationships. In particular, it considers property law disputes between cohabitants on relationship breakdown and the application of the law of trusts to determine the resolution of such disputes. As these are principles of general application which have not been designed specifically to deal with the financial consequences of relationship breakdown between cohabitants, the chapter highlights how they are generally regarded as inadequate to resolve family property disputes, producing unfair outcomes in certain situations.
Chapter
Private law disputes and issues in children cases
This examines how the courts deal with private law issues or disputes relating to children’s upbringing, such as post-separation residence or contact disputes, or other specific issues, including international child abduction. It begins by setting out some general principles for deciding children cases which are contained in section 1 of the Children Act 1989, and procedural matters relating to such cases.
Chapter
6. Financial support for children
This chapter discusses the law governing child support. Child support is regulated by one or more of several statutes depending on the circumstances: the Child Support Act 1991 (CSA 1991), as amended; Schedule 1 to the Children Act 1989; the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973; and the Civil Partnership Act 2004. The applicability of the CSA 1991 in a particular case can limit to some extent the use of the other statutes mentioned.
Chapter
10. Children needing services, care, and protection
This chapter examines the relationship between children, parents, and the state, looking at how the law responds to children needing services, care, and protection. Topics discussed include: Part III of the Children Act 1989; the threshold for compulsory intervention in family life based on the concept of ‘significant harm’; protecting children in an emergency; care and supervision orders; the local authority’s care plan and respective roles of the local authority and court; and discharge of care orders.
