Session 1

2. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Session 1 INTRODUCTIONS Aim – To introduce the trainers, aims and objectives, programme for the day

3. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Aims and Objectives Aims Participants should: Understand requirements of the new PLO and revised Statutory Guidance Understand the onus these reforms place on individuals and organisations to prevent unnecessary delay Be enabled to cascade key messages and learning points

4. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Aims and Objectives Objectives By the end of the day to be able to: Describe core components of PLO and revised Statutory Guidance Identify how the new processes and procedures differ from current system Illustrate implications of the reforms on working practices Identify how to cascade training

5. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Programme 10a.m. Session 1 – Introductions 10.20a.m. Session 2 – DVD about PLO 10.40a.m. Session 3 – Overview of Changes 10.55a.m. Session 4 – Statutory Guidance 11.30a.m. – 11.50a.m. – TEA & COFFEE BREAK 11.50a.m. Session 5 – Case Study 12.45p.m. – 1.45p.m. – LUNCH 1.45p.m. Session 6 – Public Law Outline 2.15p.m. Session 7 – Case Study 3.15p.m. Session 8 – The Way Forward 4.00p.m. END

7. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Session 2 DVD INTRODUCING THE PUBLIC LAW OUTLINE Aim – To outline why change to the care proceedings system is necessary

9. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Session 3 CARE PROCEEDINGS REFORMS: An Overview Aim – To summarise the background to the reforms and outline the main changes to become effective in April 2008

10. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training CONTEXT • Over 14,000 applications (by child) for care or supervision orders each year • More than 60% of care proceedings involve children under six years of age • Cases frequently take longer than 12 months to reach a conclusion…and the longer it takes, the longer a child has to wait for a decision as to their future • These children, and their families, are some of the most vulnerable and socially excluded people in our society

11. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training CASE FOR CHANGE Care Review (May 2006) found unnecessary delay caused by complex set of drivers: • poorly prepared court applications; • ineffective case management; • scarcity of judicial resources; • variation in quality of representation; • expert evidence that takes a long time to commission and/or is requested late and/or does not provide suitable guidance for the court; • late allocation of the children’s guardian; • alternative carers emerging late in proceedings; • variations in regional practice.

12. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training CARE REVIEW RECOMMENDATIONS The Review of the Child Care Proceedings System in England and Wales (May 2006) highlighted five key areas for attention: • Helping families - ensuring families and children understand proceedings • Better informed resolution - ensuring applications are made after all safe and appropriate alternatives have been explored • Preparation for proceedings - improving the quality and consistency of applications • During proceedings - improved case management • Inter-agency working - ensuring closer professional relationships

13. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training KEY REFORMS • Volume 1 (Court Orders) Children Act 1989 Guidance and Regulations • revised statutory guidance for local authorities, issued by the Department for Children, Schools and Families and Welsh Assembly Government • issued under the Local Authority Social Services Act 1970 • Public Law Outline • replacing the current Protocol for Judicial Case Management • setting out how cases will be managed through the courts

14. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training STATUTORY GUIDANCE Key changes: • Incorporates Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and Their Families - ensuring core assessments are completed • access for parents and those with PR to pre-proceedings legal advice • front-loaded preparation: emphasis on pre-proceedings work by local authorities

15. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Public Law Outline (PLO) Key changes: • Four stages, rather than six • Advocates’ meetings • Timetables focussed around the needs of the child • Cafcass/Cafcass Cymru analysis and recommendations

17. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Session 4 STATUTORY GUIDANCE Aim – To cover the revisions to the Statutory Guidance and the introduction of the Pre-proceedings Checklist

18. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Relevant training materials • Section 2, training packs: • pre-proceedings flowchart • slides • chapter 3, Volume 1 (Court Orders) Children Act 1989 guidance and regulations • template ‘letter before proceedings’

19. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Structure of the guidance • Chapter 3 - care and supervision - supports the PLO • But we must not forget the other chapters, which reflect case law and policy developments: • Chapter 1 - introduction • Chapter 2 - private law • Chapter 4 - emergency provisions • Chapter 5 - secure accommodation

20. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Engaging with families • Good evidence-based assessments • No ‘surprises’ about the issues • parents fully involved and informed about the possibility of proceedings • Plans in plain written terms • explained to families and children • Effective communication with children and families • tailored to their needs

21. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Engaging with families • Clarity of expectations and consequences • Identifying all significant adults in the child’s family and their role • completing appropriate kinship assessments • Quality initial and core assessments • good quality, ensuring core social work takes place

22. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Preparing for proceedings • Legal planning/gateway meetings - determining whether it is appropriate to issue a ‘letter before proceedings’ • Letters before proceedings - tailored for each individual case • Entitlement to pre-proceedings legal advice - parents/those with parental responsibility • Meeting with parents, advocates and local authority • Completion of the pre-proceedings checklist

23. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Pre-proceedings checklist From local authority files: • previous courts orders and judgments/reasons • initial and core assessments • section 7/37 reports • relatives and friends materials • single, joint or inter-agency materials (e.g. immigration/health) • pre-existing care plans • letter before proceedings To be prepared: • social work chronology • initial social work statement • care plan • allocation record and timetable for the child • schedule of proposed findings

24. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Implementation planning • Work with other local authorities and agencies to look at the implications • Consideration of how local authority processes fit with the pre-proceedings work, e.g. resource panels and planning interventions for children • Clarity internally about the resources available for working with the family and child at each stage

25. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Summary - key changes • Ensuring core assessments fully completed • Exploring kinship opportunities as fully as possible • Issuing a letter before proceedings as appropriate • Pre-proceedings legal advice - helping to clarify the issues for parents • Meeting between parents, advocates and local authority • Completion of pre-proceedings checklist

27. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Session 5 CASE STUDY PART 1 STATUTORY GUIDANCE Aim – To consider how the Statutory Guidance will work in practice Address questions 1 – 7 with reference to the revised Statutory Guidance Feedback - what aspects of the guidance will help your practice?

29. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Session 6 PUBLIC LAW OUTLINE Aim – To cover the basic requirements of the Public Law Outline, including the streamlined court process

30. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Relevant training materials • Section 3, training packs: • flowchart showing the court process • Practice Direction from the President of the Family Division, to be used by all parties as a case management tool • Public Law Outline, pages 9-11 of the Practice Direction • supplementary application form: PLO1 (Annex A) • local authority case summary form (Annex B) • draft case management order (Annex C) • Section 4, training packs: • Cafcass/Cafcass Cymru guidance for completion of the analysis and recommendations

31. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Pre-proceedings checklist • Checklist documentation should be filed, together with the supplementary application form - PLO1 • Balance - if the safety and welfare of the child means an application needs to be made immediately, local authorities should not wait until all of the documentation has been prepared • The court will review the application and checklist - standard directions will be given on issue, requesting any missing checklist materials and covering matters such as the appointment of the Children’s Guardian

32. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Allocation record • To be filed with the pre-proceedings checklist • No standard form - to be produced by the local authority • It must include a proposal about which level of court the case should be heard at • The court will review this and make a decision about allocation - space should be provided for the court’s decision in the allocation record

33. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Timetable for the child • Set by the court - and reviewed at all the PLO stages • Will take account of all significant steps in the child’s life that are likely to take place during proceedings - including legal, social care, health and education steps • Examples: • starting a new school • assessments • change in the child’s placement

34. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Streamlined process • Six stages reduced to four: • Issue and First Appointment - to allocate and give initial case management directions • Advocates’ meeting and Case Management Conference (CMC) - to identify issues and give full case management directions • Advocates’ meeting and Issues Resolution Hearing (IRH) to resolve, narrow and identify any remaining issues • Final Hearing - to determine remaining issues

35. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Issue focus • Each stage of the PLO: • focused on identifying, narrowing and resolving the key issues in the case • e.g. drink, drugs, violence • The focus should be on those issues that need to be resolved and determined by the court

36. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Advocates’ meetings • Only advocates and litigants in person should attend these meetings • To consider issues in the case at least two days before the CMC or IRH • Completion of the draft case management order - to be filed by the local authority at least one day before the hearing - identifying the key issues in the case • Emphasis on co-operation

37. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Experts • There will be a separate Practice Direction on how and when experts will be appointed in court proceedings • The appointment of an expert is a matter to be determined by the court • An expert’s report should not take the place of core social work - e.g. initial and core assessments, and assessment of family members as carers

38. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Cafcass/Cafcass Cymru analysis and recommendations • Incremental analysis and reporting in order to help the court focus on the key issues - at each stage of the case • Initial analysis and recommendations at day six will be built upon for the CMC and IRH • The final report is replaced by a final analysis and recommendations, which is a sum of the earlier analysis

39. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training A new model of practice • Making an early contribution, with analysis of the pre-proceedings work done by the local authority • Understanding and promoting the child’s immediate and life-long welfare needs, and promoting the child’s active participation - core to the case analysis, intervention and case management • Working with the child as an active partner in their own case, and identifying issues that might influence the ‘Timetable for the Child’ at each stage

40. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Writing for Court • Reporting at each stage through Analysis and Recommendations documents • Working draft for initiative areas - implementation of final version from April 2008 • Templates provided for: • Initial Analysis • Interim Analysis • Final Analysis • Checklist for verbal information at First Appointment (if no time to prepare written document) • Guidance notes include a ‘Funnel’ document of questions to be addressed at each stage

41. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Summary - key changes • Filing checklist documentation and supplementary form PLO1 with the application • New, streamlined court process • New allocation record and timetable for the child • Ensuring advocates’ meetings take place • Completion of draft case management order • Focus on identifying, narrowing and resolving issues at all stages of the PLO • Change in reporting role for children’s guardian - incremental and analytical reporting at all stages

43. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Session 7 CASE STUDY PARTS 2 – 4 PUBLIC LAW OUTLINE Aim – To consider how the Public Law Outline will work in practice Address questions 8 – 23 with reference to the Practice Direction Feedback – how will the Public Law Outline help your practice?

45. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Session 8 THE WAY FORWARD Aim – What will you do to implement the Statutory Guidance and the PLO in your own agency? How can agencies best work together? Plenary to summarise action points

46. Statutory Guidance and Public Law Outline Training Action planning - considerations • Training - how and when will it be cascaded to peers and colleagues • Inter-agency working - who do you need to work with to make this a reality • Impact assessment - e.g. what working practices/structures may need to change • Implementation planning