Can I Stop Social Services Taking My Baby?
It is perhaps one of the worst nightmares a parent can suffer – not knowing if they will be able to keep their baby when it is born; or whether social services (known as Children’s Services) will remove their child from the care.
As worrying as it sounds, it is possible that social services can take your baby when it is born.
There are however steps that must be taken by Children’s Services before they can remove a baby from their parents care. Children’s Services cannot simply walk in and have your baby removed from your care.
Children’s Services may consider a need to separate a baby or child from a parent where there are concerns that the child could be at risk of significant harm, which could be as a result of factors such as:-
- A parent’s ability to protect their child;
- Alcohol or substance abuse;
- Criminal history
- Child protection concerns
- Domestic violence
- Previous court proceedings or involvement from
- Children’s Services
- Poor home conditions
Knowing these factors, then your next question must be:
“How Do I Stop Children’s Services From Taking My Baby?”
The answer is to make changes in your lifestyle so that these circumstances are no longer there.
For example, if there are concerns are alcohol or substance misuse, work with local agencies to achieve abstinence. If there are concerns around an ability to parent a child, complete a parenting course.
Where Children’s Services allege concerns, they should engage with a family under early intervention (such as a child in need plan, child protection plan or under the pre-proceedings process). The purpose of such early intervention is for Children’s Services to highlight their alleged concerns, and to detail what improvements need to be made in order to remove the concerns of Children’s Services.
Whilst a social worker can offer guidance and assistance, it is important to work with your solicitor or other groups to address concerns and make the changes you need to make. Unfortunately, waiting for a social worker to progress matters on your behalf, such as referrals to parenting courses, may result in delays which prejudice your case. A parent or carer should therefore where possible, with the help of a solicitor or other advisor, progress matters on their own with a view to reducing or removing the concerns raised by Children’s Services.
How Is It Decided If Children’s Services Can Take Your Baby?
Unless a parent consents to a child being removed from their care, or unless there is police intervention, Children’s Services can only remove a child with a court order (known as an emergency protection order or interim care order/care order).
Where Children’s Services allege that their concerns remain, they may, after the birth of your baby, apply to start court proceedings (known as care proceedings). Before a court intervenes in family life, Children’s Services must evidence:-
- Your child is suffering or likely to suffer significant harm; and
- That the harm or likelihood of harm is attributable to:
- The care given to the child is not what it would be reasonable to expect the parent to give him; or
- The child is beyond parental control.
These factors are what is known as the threshold criteria. Only if these are met can the court make a court order in respect of a child.
Children’s Services will provide a document to the court, known as a threshold document, which details the allegations they say meets the threshold criteria. If these are disputed by a parent, the court will have to decide the truth (known as findings) potentially after hearing evidence or submissions (legal speeches).
Unfortunately, when a court considers the evidence, the standard of proof required is no more than the ‘balance of probabilities’. In other words, is it more likely to have happened then not. This is different to criminal proceedings where the standard of proof is ‘beyond reasonable doubt’.
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Established in 1982, at Brendan Fleming Solicitors* we specialise in Family Law, offering our clients expert legal advice in both Public and Private Law matters, including Care Proceedings, Non-Accidental Injury, Divorce & Children’s Proceedings and issues with Social Services.
Contact Brendan Fleming Solicitors* by emailing info@brendanfleming.co.uk or by calling 0121 683 5000
Contact our Non-Accidental Injury Department on 07730 143 432. If it is out of hours, you can call our staffed 24 hour helpline on 0121 683 5000. Alternatively you can email us on help@nonaccidentalinjury.co.uk
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