A care order is made when a court believes that a child is at risk of suffering or is likely to suffer significant harm within their home environment. But what are the reasons for the local authority to take action and apply to the court for a care order? This article finds out.
A care order is made when a court believes that a child is at risk of suffering or is likely to suffer significant harm within their home environment. But what are the reasons for the local authority to take action and apply to the court for a care order? This article finds out.
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Threshold criteria
The court will only make a care order if it is satisfied that the threshold criteria are met. This is that the child is suffering, or is likely to suffer, significant harm, and that the harm, or the likelihood of harm, is due to the following:
- The care the child is receiving
- The care the child is likely to receive if the care order isn’t made
- The child being beyond parental control
What are the reasons a child may be taken into care?
The Children Act 1989 gives the local authority the power to apply for a care order. Here is our non-exhaustive list of the reasons they may take such action:
- Neglect – there are many types of neglect that could lead to a child being take into care. Not providing attention, emotional care or affection to children leads to emotional neglect. This is often a symptom of emotional or physical abuse. Children often need medical attention, and not providing this is considered medical neglect. This could be down to general carelessness or standing by cultural or religious beliefs. Sometimes, children’s basic needs may be neglected, such as providing food, water, or a clean and safe living environment
- Parent illness – both physical and mental illness of a parent can lead to them being deemed incapable of looking after a child. This is likely to lead to either temporary or long-term foster care placements, depending on the extent of the illness.
- Physical or emotional abuse comes in many forms which could lead to a child being removed by social services, including: emotional abuse, similar to emotional neglect, emotional abuse can be hard to prove. However, it refers to shouting, belittling, bullying, and making the child feel unwanted or unsafe. Physical abuse is one of the most common reasons for a child to be taken into care. Bruising on a child often identifies this type of abuse, or evidence that a child is being restrained in a violent or dangerous way. Sexual abuse encompasses persuading a child to take part in sexual acts, or often against their own will.
- Abandonment – in rare cases, parents simply abandon their children with no explanation. This could be dropping their child off at a frequently visited destination or to a person they trust, but then never returning. Often, when abandonment happens, parents will just leave the child at home for an extended period, such as going on holiday.
- Parent being imprisoned – if a parent is sentenced to prison and there is no one who can take care of the child during the parent’s absence, alternative care will need to be provided. This often comes in the form of short-term fostering or emergency foster placements.
- Death – if the parents are deceased and there is no other appropriate adult to care for the child, they would be placed into the care system.
- Unaccompanied asylum seeking children (UASC) – there are some instances where children may be placed in the care system because of asylum, which has unfortunately left them unaccompanied.
- Voluntarily putting a child into care – on some occasions, parents may place their child into foster care on a voluntary basis. The reasons for this could be for some of the reasons mentioned above; however, the most common reason is when the parents cannot, or do not want to, care for the child any longer. In addition, children may need to be put into care because of their own actions, or if their parents cannot take care of them or manage their behaviour any longer. This includes: runaways – the child is frequently running away, and the parents cannot control this behaviour; truancy – not attending school could lead parents to voluntarily place a child in care; juvenile offender – if the child has had issues with law enforcement, they may be placed into remand fostering.
What can be done to prevent a child being taken into care?
Here are our suggestions for things that can be done to try to prevent a child being taken into care:
- Early help and intervention – identifying and addressing a child or family’s needs early on can help protect children from harm and reduce the need for a referral to child protection services. As can parent’s engaging with social services appropriately and fully.
- A child protection plan can outline what needs to be done to keep a child safe and promote their welfare. This also requires the commitment of the parents to ensure they comply with the protection plan.
- If the child is removed from their parents, a child may be able to live with a relative, friend, or other connected person if they cannot be cared for by their parents, such as their grandparents.
- If social services are seeking to remove a child, the parents are entitled to legal representation and should seek legal advice at the earliest opportunity. Legal aid is often available in such cases
What are the implications of a care order for a parent?
A care order has several implications for a parent, not least the local authority will share parental responsibility for the child and can make decisions about their upbringing, such as where they live, who looks after them, and where they are educated. The local authority also has the power to limit a parent’s responsibility if it is deemed necessary for the child’s welfare. In addition, the court can make orders about how often the parents see the children with social workers having permission to make decisions as they think fit. That said, the parents must be kept informed of all decisions made by social workers and the wider local authority as necessary. If a final care order has been made, it will last until the child reaches the age of 18, although the court can end it before then if circumstances have changed.
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