Adoption & Care Proceedings

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How do care proceedings work?

When social services are concerned about a child’s welfare they will look closely at the child’s situation and family life. Taking children away from their parents should normally be the last step social services take to make sure the children are safe and well cared for.  Help and assistance should also be offered to the parents. A parent or parents should always be involved in decisions made about their child or children unless a court has decided they should not.

The welfare of children is the most important consideration and it can often feel to the parents that they are being pushed aside or treated unfairly. However, the safety and protection of the child involved will usually be the first priority.  Where arrangements for the child or children cannot be agreed, the local authorities are enabled to take protective measures for the child or children in their area.  The social services have a statutory duty of care towards these children.

The main orders within care proceedings are:

  • Emergency Protection Orders.
  • Care Orders.
  • Interim Care Orders.
  • Supervision Orders.
  • Interim Supervision Orders.
  • Child Assessment Orders.

Some meetings and procedures may take place without court proceedings- such as Child Protection Conferences, Core Groups and Pre-Proceedings (known as Letter before Action Meetings).

Police Protection Orders can occur without proceedings in place but they can only last for 72 hours.

How can we help?

At Brighton & Hove Law, we are experienced in working through difficult and complicated circumstances. If you have received a letter before proceedings, social services have taken your child into care or have threatened to do so, it is important that you are represented by a specialist who can guide you through this process. It is important you seek legal advice as soon as possible, as you will generally qualify for legal aid. We can obtain this for you on an emergency basis if necessary. Please contact us if you have any questions or feel you need our help.

Client Testimonials

Sarah Dummett and Ellie Chapman provide a first class, client focused service. Their advice and approach is accessible while robust.

Ayisha Robertson, Barrister

Thank you for all your help through my divorce. It has truly been an incredibly stressful ordeal, much more than I ever thought it would be. What I originally thought would be a simple and even quick divorce and parting of the ways, turned into something really quite different and ugly. However, you have kept me updated through the whole procedure, explained my options to me and the process. Some of which not always clear to me so thank you for your patience. You have also been mindful of costings of which I am grateful. Your attention to detail was also very reassuring, especially at a times when I just wanted the whole thing to be over.
So again, thank you.

Mrs W – Brighton 

Dear Jennifer, thank you for your hard work and support.

It was a great pleasure to work with you. I will advise a friend who is going through a similar situation to use you.

Ms J – Brighton

Thank you for all the hard work, time and effort your put into this case to help me and my son. You have been fantastic through and always supported and advised when it was needed.

Ms B

I cannot recommend Lucy Gregory from Brighton & Hove Law enough to anyone who is about to embark on a divorce. She was my rock in extremely difficult proceedings and I honestly don’t know what I would have done without her knowledge, support and professionalism. I was given superior service and will always be glad I chose Brighton & Hove Law and Lucy to get me through one of the most anxious and stressful chapters of my life. An amazingly kind but professional family law firm to deal with. I will be forever grateful to you Lucy.

Ms D

I must say you have been amazing throughout this process and we both are most grateful. I know it has not been the most straightforward of cases, but your understanding, flexibility and patience, along with your excellent communications have made it as pain free as could be possible. I will without doubt be recommending your services.

Mr F

It is a breath of fresh air to encounter such a dedicated and experienced Family Law Team at Brighton and Hove Law who service a broad spectrum of family work, especially supporting and advising parents whose children are subject to public law proceedings. Their dedication to clients who require special care, support and protection is unrivalled. As part of that team, Samantha Barker shows a real depth of experience and knowledge of family law and will pursue cases boldly and vigorously often achieving positive results which at the outset looked very unlikely.

Mark Love, Head of Chambers

I received a very good and prompt service and I would recommend you to my friends.

Ms W

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