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Care proceedings
The council can start care proceedings if they’re very worried about a child. They can apply for a care order, which means the council will assume parental responsibility for your child and can determine where your child can live.
The council can also apply for a placement order as well if they believe that the child should be adopted. This allows the council to place the child with suitable adopters.
Interim care proceeding orders
At the start of care proceedings, the council asks the family court to make a temporary court order called an interim care order. If the court agrees, the council can take the child into care on a temporary basis. This can be for up to 8 weeks.
Looking at the case
It can take up to 26 weeks for a court to decide what should happen to the child. Some complex cases can take longer.
During this time a social worker and an officer from the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass) will look into the reasons why the child may be at risk. They will also look at what can be done to keep them safe. They will talk to the parents and the child. They may talk to other family members or friends about looking after the child if they cannot safely live at home. The parents might also get support.
Reports
The social worker and Cafcass officer will each write a report for the court. These will outline what they think should happen to the child. They will include whether they think the child should be taken into care or stay with the family.
Once all the information has been gathered, there will be a court hearing.
