There is a lot of confusing terminology in children law proceedings. Unfortunately, if you don’t understand the terminology or the court process, it can affect your chances of getting the parenting arrangements and child arrangement order you want.
Family law solicitor Angelique Holm explains what a CAFCASS safeguarding letter is and why the letter is important.
Contact Angelique Holm for advice on parenting arrangements and representation in child arrangement order applications.
Telephone 0203 488 8620, email info@hopeholm.co.uk, or visit Hopeholm Family Law.
What is a CAFCASS safeguarding letter?
A CAFCASS officer writes a safeguarding letter at the outset of children’s law proceedings. The letter influences what happens at the first court hearing of a children’s law application.
When is a CAFCASS safeguarding letter written?
A safeguarding letter is written at the start of the court process to provide information to the judge before the first hearing of the court application for a children’s law order. The letter could be written in an application for:
- A child arrangement order
- A prohibited steps order
- A specific issue order
- A relocation order
- A holiday order
- An application to vary an existing child arrangement order or other order
- A guardianship order
- A parental responsibility order
Why is a CAFCASS safeguarding letter important?
A safeguarding letter may not sound important, but it is, as it could influence:
- The interim parenting or contact arrangements until the final hearing.
- The court decision to order a Section 7 CAFCASS report.
- The court decision to order expert reports. For example, on drug or alcohol dependency or psychological evidence.
- The court decision to order a finding of fact hearing to determine if disputed allegations are true.
Who writes a safeguarding letter?
A CAFCASS officer writes the safeguarding letter. If this is the first time you have applied for an order relating to your children or responded to an application started by the children’s other parent, you may not have heard of CAFCASS.
CAFCASS stands for: The Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service.
CAFCASS is independent of the court and social services. It is a government body whose officials represent the interests of children and young people involved in family law court proceedings.
A CAFCASS officer writes a safeguarding letter in children’s law proceedings to provide the court with basic background information before the first hearing.
The role of CAFCASS in writing the safeguarding letter
CAFCASS is independent of the family court and the local authority. Preparing a safeguarding letter does not mean there are any welfare concerns about the children.
The safeguarding letter is standard practice in all children’s law applications. The fact that a letter has been written does not mean that the court will order a Section 7 report on the children at the first directions appointment.
The officer who prepared the safeguarding letter may not be further involved in the children’s law application, even if a court orders a Section 7 report. Another officer may be allocated to prepare the full report.
What does a safeguarding letter contain?
A safeguarding letter normally contains:
- Details of the current living and parenting arrangements.
- Safeguarding information.
- Summary of telephone conversation with the parents and any other parties to the application.
- Analysis by the CAFCASS officer of any safeguarding risk.
What safeguarding checks are carried out by CAFCASS
The safeguarding letter is a preliminary report, so safeguarding checks will be carried out with:
- The police and
- The local authority.
Not all historical convictions are relevant. For example, a speeding or shoplifting conviction. However, referrals to the police for incidents of domestic violence may flag safeguarding issues, even though the referrals did not result in a conviction.
What happens if parents don’t speak to CAFCASS about the safeguarding letter?
Sometimes parents don’t realise why someone from CAFCASS is trying to talk to them by phone before a court hearing. Other parents think that any discussion can take place in court. However, if you can’t speak to CAFCASS, your views will not be included in the safeguarding letter. Therefore, Angelique Holm always recommends speaking to CAFCASS if they call you as part of their safeguarding process.
Sometimes CAFCASS will not contact a parent before the first court hearing. If that happens, it’s important to speak to the family court advisor at the first hearing so they can update any safeguarding information.
What happens if CAFCASS says there is a safeguarding issue in their letter
If the CAFCASS officer concludes that there is a safeguarding issue, they are required to:
- Write a risk assessment for the court to outline the concerns and the proposed next steps, and
- Make a referral to the local authority children’s service to advise them of the concerns.
At the first hearing of the court application, the judge will review the safeguarding letter. If it flags safeguarding issues, the judge may order a report from a local authority social worker (Section 37 report) instead of a CAFCASS officer (Section 7 report).
Is the safeguarding letter the end of CAFCASS’s involvement?
At the initial court hearing, a judge can decide:
- There is no need for any additional input from CAFCASS.
- Order a report from a CAFCASS officer restricted to reporting on a child’s wishes and feelings.
- Order a full Section 7 report from CAFCASS to address any welfare issues.
Section 7 reports take time to complete, so the court will not order one unless welfare issues are raised. For example:
- A dispute over whether a child has contact until 4 pm or 7 pm on a Sunday may not justify a welfare report or
- Unresolved serious allegations of domestic violence may result in the decision to order a Section 7 report being deferred until after a finding of fact hearing.
Talk to Angelique Holm at Hopeholm
Angelique Holm specialises in family law and children proceedings. She will explain the court process and the alternatives and robustly represent you to help you secure the order you believe is in your child’s best interests.
Telephone 0203 488 8620, email info@hopeholm.co.uk, or visit HopeHolm Family Law.