Public Law Outline

What this Means to my Practice

Reaching early resolutions and better outcomes for children,

young people and their families.

Learning Outcomes

• Know the changes that need to take place in managing court procedures

• Clear understanding of your role in the Public Law Outline

• Clear understanding of the roles of others and the need to work in partnership

• Know how to support social workers in using the PLO in their work

• Know where to find National & Local resources

• Welcome• Overview • Guidance • Public Law Outline• Practice Changes – exercise• Comfort break – 20 mins• Questions• Supporting social workers in their work• Close

CARE PROCEEDINGS REFORMS:

An Overview

Aim – To summarise the background to the reforms and outline the main changes to become effective in April 2008

Context

• Over 14,000 applications (by child) for care or supervision orders each year

• More than 60% of care proceedings involve children under six years of age

• Cases frequently take longer than 12 months to reach a conclusion…and the longer it takes, the longer a child has to wait for a decision as to their future

• These children, and their families, are some of the most vulnerable and socially excluded people in our society

Why the Change?

Care Review (May 2006) found unnecessary delaycaused by complex set of drivers:

– poorly prepared court applications;– ineffective case management;– scarcity of judicial resources;– variation in quality of representation;– expert evidence that takes a long time to

commission and/or is requested late and/or does not provide suitable guidance for the court;

– late allocation of the children’s guardian;– alternative carers emerging late in

proceedings;– variations in regional practice.

Care Review Recommendations

The Review of the Child Care Proceedings System in England and Wales (May 2006) highlighted five key areas for attention:

– Helping families - ensuring families and children understand proceedings

– Better informed resolution - ensuring applications are made after all safe and appropriate alternatives have been explored

– Preparation for proceedings - improving the quality and consistency of applications

– During proceedings - improved case management– Inter-agency working - ensuring closer professional

relationships

Key Principles for Engaging with Families

• Good evidence based assessments• No surprises• Parents to be fully involved• Plans to be written in plain English• Effective communication with children• Identification of the cause of the worry• Clarification on all expectations and consequences• Identification of significant adults in the a child's family

and their role• Quality initial and core assessments

Children in Need Meeting

• Produce a plan which everyone agrees with• Make clear the outcomes that need to be

achieved and how they will be measured• Agree timescales for outcomes to be achieved• Make clear everyone’s contribution to the plan to

achieve the outcome

Looked After Children

• Health Assessments

• Assessment of Family members and/ others who can care for the child/yp

• Need to make clear decisions in the best interests of the child

• Need to ensure that as Corporate parents we are all agreeing to the plans before we get to Court

Cafcass

• Need to be notified when agreement made to apply to court

• Provide information earlier

• Work actively with children

• Seek child’s views

• Use analysis

• Less duplication of information in their reports – refer to evidence submitted

Co-operation

• ‘All parties and representatives should co-operate wherever reasonably practicable to help towards securing the welfare of the child as paramount consideration’

• The public law outline p17

Key Reforms

• Volume 1 (Court Orders) Children Act 1989 Guidance and Regulations– revised statutory guidance for local authorities, issued by the

Department for Children, Schools and Families and Welsh Assembly Government

– issued under the Local Authority Social Services Act 1970

• Public Law Outline– replacing the current Protocol for Judicial Case Management– setting out how cases will be managed through the courts

Statutory Guidance

Key changes:

– Incorporates Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and Their Families - ensuring core assessments are completed

– access for parents and those with PR to pre-proceedings legal advice

– front-loaded preparation: emphasis on pre-proceedings work by local authorities

Public Law Outline (PLO)

Key changes:

– Four stages, rather than six

– Advocates’ meetings

– Timetables focussed around the needs of the child

– Cafcass analysis and recommendations

STATUTORY GUIDANCE

Aim – To cover the revisions to the Statutory Guidance and the introduction of the Pre-proceedings Checklist

Pre- Proceedings Activity

• Pre –Proceedings Checklist• Legal planning meeting• Letter before proceedings letter• Legal advice for parents• Meeting with parents• Legal planning meeting• Pre-proceedings checklist finalised• Application for a care/supervision order

Legal Planning Meeting/Discussion

• Identify the concerns with LA legal team• Agree if threshold is met• Identify the documentation needed as evidence• Consider the action needed to be taken by

parents and LA

Letter Before Proceedings

• Written by the LA • Gives parents a summary of the concerns• Gives information about the LA has done to

support• Identifies the needs to be addressed• Defines the outcome if concerns not addressed• Provides encouragement to seek legal advice• Invitation to attend a meeting to discuss

Meeting with Parents

• Chaired by social worker’s manager• Identifies concerns and outcome• Agrees action to be taken to safeguard the

child , by whom and when to be completed• What action the LA will take if no change• Written action plan given to parents and others

that have attended

If No Change?

• Manager liaises with CLU, a further legal planning meeting/discussion

• Agreement made on action• Directions on future assessments• LA responsible for making an application to court

Summary - Key Changes

• Ensuring core assessments fully completed• Exploring kinship opportunities as fully as

possible• Issuing a letter before proceedings as

appropriate• Pre-proceedings legal advice - helping to clarify

the issues for parents• Meeting between parents, advocates and local

authority• Completion of pre-proceedings checklist

Public Law Outline

Stream lined Process

• Six stages reduced to four:– Issue and First Appointment - to allocate and

give initial case management directions– Advocates’ meeting and Case Management

Conference (CMC) - to identify issues and give full case management directions

– Advocates’ meeting and Issues Resolution Hearing (IRH) to resolve, narrow and identify any remaining issues

– Final Hearing - to determine remaining issues

– flowchart showing the court process– supplementary application form: PLO1 (Annex

A)– local authority case summary form (Annex B)– draft case management order (Annex C)– Timetable for the child– Cafcass guidance for completion of the

analysis and recommendations

26

Understanding and promoting the child’s immediate and life-long welfare needs, and promoting the child’s active participation, is core to

Cafcass analysis, intervention and case management

Case management /

planning

AnalysisChild-centred intervention

Child’s immediate & lifelong welfare

•Appraise LA work in the case• Focus on key issues • Regular information to the court

• Maximise safety• Direct work to understand Needs, Wishes & Feelings• Appropriate participation so views reach court as directly as possible• Work with family, social & professional networks to ascertain ability to meet the child’s NWF• Inform child of outcomes•Handover to IRO•Make information available for child’s lifetime

• Case planning process focuses on reducing non-purposive delay so timetable meets the child’s needs• Narrow the issues / outstanding action / information needed to assist court in case management e.g. experts; level; other parties

Court Proceedings

• Stage 1 Issue and 1st appointment• Stage 2 advocates meetings/discussion and

case management conference• Stage 3 Advocates meeting and Issues

resolution hearing• Stage 4 Final hearing

Experts

• There will be a separate Practice Direction on how and when experts will be appointed in court proceedings

• The appointment of an expert is a matter to be determined by the court

• An expert’s report should not take the place of core social work - e.g. initial and core assessments, and assessment of family members as carers

Day 1

• Application issued by court officer• Court case manager nominated• Pre-proceedings checklist considered and

directions given• ?allocation/transfer to County Court• Children’s guardian appointed – case analysis

and recommendations for 1st appointment• Solicitor appointed for child• Date set for 1st appointment (before Day 6)

By Day 3

• Children’s Guardian will be allocated• LA serves application form and the checklist

documents on all parties to the proceedings

1st Appointment

• By day 6• Confirms timetable for the child• Arrangements for contested hearing if need notified to

the court• Confirmation of allocation/transfer• Children’s Guardian requested to prepare care analysis

and recommendations for the Case Management Conference

• Scrutiny of the Care Plan• Identify additional parties and representation• Give initial case management directions• Identify if suitable for ‘early final hearing’

Advocates Meeting/Discussion• 2-7 days before the Case Management

Conference• Legal advocates• Consider case summaries, case analysis, &

recommendations• Identify and agree proposed experts and draft ?s• Notify court if a contested hearing• LA to complete the Draft Case Management

Order to filed no later that 11 am before the Case management Conference

Case Management Conference

• Held no later than day 45• Reviews and confirms child’s timetable• Confirms allocation/transfer• Scrutinises the care plan• Identifies remaining issues/concerns• Considers the case management directions in the draft

case management Order• Scrutinises the expert directions• Compliance checked with existing directions• Court issues the case management order• Issues resolution hearing listed• Final hearing

Final Approved Draft Case Management Order

• Parties/legal reps to submit electronic form of the final draft case management order by the end of the day.

Advocates meeting 2-7 days before Issues Resolution

Hearing• Legal advocate• Consider case summaries and case analysis

and recommendations• Draft case management order• Notify court of contested hearing• Time for oral evidence to be heard• LA file Draft case management order to court no

later than 11am on the day before the issues resolution hearing

Issues Resolution Hearing between 16 & 25 weeks

• Identification by the court of the key issues if any to be determined

• Review an confirm the timetable for the child• Scrutinise compliance with directions• Consider the draft case management order• Scrutinise the care plan• Give direction for Hearing documents• Court issues case Management order

Final Hearing

• Timed to be in accordance with the individual timetable of the child

• All parties file and serve updated case management documents and bundles

• Draft final orders in approved form• Judgement/reasons

Summary – Key Changes

• Filing checklist documentation and supplementary form PLO1 with the application

• New, streamlined court process• New allocation record and timetable for the child• Ensuring advocates’ meetings take place• Completion of draft case management order• Focus on identifying, narrowing and resolving

issues at all stages of the PLO• Change in reporting role for children’s guardian -

incremental and analytical reporting at all stages

How does my Practice need to Change?

• What are the differences I will need to make to my practice?

• What questions do I have?

• (30 mins)

Comfort Break

20 mins

Response to Questions

How Can I Support Social Workers

• What ideas do you have and what key principles do we need to have within CSF to support social workers to use the PLO in their work

• (20 mins)

Managers Supporting Social Workers

What next?

• Who else needs to be informed about the changes?

• What extra information do we need to feel confident to implement?

• What does my team need?

Resources

• www.justice.gov.uk/docs/faqs-careproceedings-reform

• www.tactcare.org.uk

• http://www.cafcass.gov.uk/publications/my_needs,_wishes_and_feelings.aspx

• Connect - organisaton:csf:L&D:a-z:workshops:public law outline

For Professionals

• New forms & processes• New ways of thinking• New guidance• Development of different skills• Assessments to be completed with analysis• Need for SMART planning• More collaborative working with other

professionals• Different relationship with CAFCASS• Expert assessments to be earlier.

For Children & their Families

• More focus on resolution of issues

• More honest and open

• Timetable for child linked to their needs

• SMART plans with outcomes

• Emphasis on working together to reach best outcome for child

• Child’s views actively listened to by the Guardian and reported to the court