CAFCASS stands for Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service.
They are an independent court-appointed body of social workers, appointed to make ‘sure that children’s voices are heard at the heart of the family court setting’.
They also assist the court on matters of safety and welfare for every child that is the subject of court proceedings in England and Wales.
CAFCASS are separate from social services. CAFCASS will become involved once a private children application is made at court. They are appointed to objectively assess the best interest of the children involved and provide recommendations to the court, following an unbiased and impartial review of all the facts.
Once a Children Act application is made, the court will advise CAFCASS who will complete initial safeguarding and background checks with the local authority and police for any potential risks to the children. CAFCASS will also briefly speak to all parties to the application (usually mother and father, but occasionally grandparents too) and ascertain if they have any additional safeguarding or wellbeing concerns for the children. In certain cases, the children’s schools, or pastoral care services may also be spoken to.
Once these checks have been completed, CAFCASS will issue a safeguarding letter to the court. This letter will indicate any additional evidence it is suggested should be obtained as part of the process which may assist them in coming to a decision, such as medical evidence or police records.
Where CAFCASS are satisfied there are no immediate safeguarding concerns, they will have no further involvement with the matter. They can be directed to prepare an additional report, known as a section 7 report to identify what recommendations they have for the time the child/ren shall spend with each parent, which is often the subject of the initial application. A section 7 report will involve CAFCASS speaking to the children, in an age-appropriate manner, to obtain their wishes and feelings on where they should live etc. They will also speak to the parents to obtain their views before completing their report
The recommendations in a section 7 report are not binding on the court, but should the court wish to deviate from this recommendation, they will have to justify why they feel that this is necessary, which will often refer to the oral evidence of one of the parents at a final hearing.
If you are a parent who should like to discuss a potential or ongoing matter under the Children Act 1989, please contact our experienced family law team on 01608 656 590 or send us an email.