Care or Supervision Order Proceedings

Application for Care or Supervision Order

If a Local Authority believes that a child is suffering significant harm or at risk of suffering significant harm an application can be made to the court for a Care Order or a Supervision Order (links to page explaining Care and Supervision Order) in order to protect the child. The Local Authority will only take this step if it is considered that support is required to enable the child to remain at home or that the risks are so great that the child can no longer remain safely at home.

Court Proceedings

If you have been advised by the Local Authority that court proceedings are being started, you may well be worried what will happen next. Fairbrother & Darlow can help you to understand the court process and represent you throughout any court proceedings. This will enable you to set out your position before the court.

It is likely that any court proceedings are likely to take a number of months to complete in order to allow the Local Authority and other relevant professionals to complete assessments of you and your child. Often expert assessments from independent experts, such as psychologists or independent social workers, will be needed in order to enable the court to decide the best outcome for your child.

Generally, care proceedings should be completed within 26 weeks but this is not always the case and this time frame can be extended in certain circumstances.