Social Services Involvement and Care Proceedings

If social services and the local authority believe your child’s welfare is at risk or they are not being properly looked after they might consider starting an initial investigation or the Public Law Outline (PLO) process which may lead to them taking the case to court.

The threat of having your child taken away from you can be a traumatic and distressing experience. If social services get involved in the welfare of your child, they will usually send a ‘letter before proceedings’ which explains the reasons why the local authority is thinking about asking the court to take your child into care. Included in the letter will be details of a PLO  meeting, which you will need to attend, otherwise social services and the courts will make decisions on your behalf. In advance of the meeting you will also be sent the reports that social services will discuss with you during the session.

At Rotheras we understand the fear and anxiety that comes with finding out social services are considering taking your child away from you. We would advise contacting a child care solicitor as soon as you receive a ‘letter before proceedings’ as they will be able to provide reassurance by explaining the process involved and attend the pre-proceedings meeting with you.

Why use Rotheras for Social Services Involvement and Care Proceedings?

We can guide you through the process including going over the letter before proceedings.

We can attend the PLO meeting with you to offer guidance and support and help you work out an agreement to stop your case from going to court.

We can advise you on your options including applying to the court to stop social services from gaining a Care Order, and Supervision Orders or Family Assistance Orders.

We can help with section 17 provisions for children in need.

We can advise you on Legal Aid if you are a parent or have parental responsibility.

We can assist you in situations where your case has gone straight to court.

We can also advise grandparents, other family members, or foster carers who are involved in care proceedings, through offering to care for the child in the short-term or long-term, by supervising contact or having contact with the child in their own right.

We can help you with:

• Care proceedings
• Child arrangements
• Child protection matters
• Guardianship/ Special Guardianship Orders
• Adoption
• Supervision Orders
• Emergency Protection Orders
• Police Protection Orders

“We handle clients with sensitivity and understanding throughout”

Ann-Marie Bowman
Partner