Ceasing to Look After a Child
Scope of this chapter
The Local Authority has a duty to ensure that when children have been Accommodated under Section 20 (Children Act 1989) and are discharged from, or leave care, that the discharge is in their best interests and that they will be safeguarded and their welfare will be promoted. Where a child has been Accommodated for 20 days or more, the decision should be made by a Nominated Officer, or Director of Children's Services if the child/young person is 16/17 years and has been Accommodated under Section 20, before discharge.
Related guidance
- Leaving Care and Transition
- The Children Act 1989 Guidance and Regulations - Volume 2: Care Planning, Placement and Case Review
- The Children Act 1989 Guidance and Regulation - Volume 3: Planning Transition to Adulthood for Care Leavers
- Working Together to Safeguard Children, Assessing need and providing help
Amendment
In October 2024, the reference to Working Together flowchart was updated.
Children become Accommodated through Section 20 for many different reasons and are some of the most vulnerable children. Section 20 Accommodation can:
- Offer children and families short term support as a result of disability (short term break);
- Support a family in crisis, for example, as a result of health issues of the carer and where no other family or friend is available;
- Be the first stage for a Relinquished Child – particularly a child under 6 weeks of age;
- Be a means of safeguarding a child as a result of Child Protection Enquiries, enabling an assessment of risk and needs prior to more formal planning;
- Ensure appropriate care to a child who presents as 'abandoned';
- Be a way of managing a child where there are concerns of Significant Harm as a result of appearing to be 'beyond parental control';
- Offer the level of support and care required to an unaccompanied young person from abroad (see Unaccompanied Migrant Children and Child Victims of Trafficking and Modern Slavery Procedure).
When a child is Accommodated, (and it is not part of a planned Short Break Procedure), timescales should be established at the outset for the length of time the Accommodation is considered to be required, together with a plan for the child returning home. A child/young person cannot be accommodated under s20 of the Children Act 1989 unless the parents have high capacity and they have given signed permission and fully understand they can remove the child from the care of the Local Authority at any time.
The first Looked After (Child in Care) Review should take place within 20 working days and will be key to evaluating the risk, or likelihood of risk, of any Significant Harm; the needs of the child; further detailed multi-agency work required to support to the child and family, together with the timescales for these.
There can sometimes be concern about delay because of issues in working with either the parent or child. Equally, a parent or carer may request that the child be returned to their care ahead of the Care Plan, or where the concerns still exist (see Section 2.3, Circumstances Around Ceasing to Look After a Child).
Where a child has been Accommodated for 20 working days or more, the Local Authority must carefully consider a request for the child to be discharged from care to ensure they remain safe and that their welfare continues to be promoted.
Ceasing to Look After a child will normally be part of the Care Plan that will fully consider these issues.
Prior to making a decision about a child coming into Local Authority Care, Children and Families Assessment should be completed and a range of multi-agency information about the child and the family which will include an understanding of the child and family's needs, wishes and wants, together with an appreciation of their respective abilities to work with support services in a positive and constructive way.
Where the plan is for a child to return to the care of their family when they cease to be looked-after, there should be a robust planning and decision-making process to ensure the decision is in the best interests of the child and will safeguard and promote their welfare.
In making the decision to cease looking after a child, the Authority must assess:
- The suitability of the child's proposed accommodation and maintenance when he/she ceases to be looked-after; and
- What services and support the child might need and who they might contact for support;
- Where the child is returning home, what services and support the parent might need and who they might contact for support;
- The Local Authority must also ascertain the child's wishes and feelings about the proposed plan for their care (having regard to their age and understanding), and consider them;
- Consideration must also be given to the wider context of the family and environmental factors.
Where a child has been in Care for 20 working days or more, the decision to cease looking after the child should not be put into effect until it has been approved by the Director of Children's Services.
Where the child/young person is 16/17 years and has been Accommodated under Section 20, discharge from care should not take place until the decision has been approved by the Director of Children's Services (see Section 3, Children Who are 'Eligible Children' – Transition into Adulthood). These cases should be presented to the Best Practice and Scrutiny forum and if agreement is given will be further considered by the Director.
In making the decision, the Director of Children's Services must be satisfied that:
- The young person's wishes have been ascertained and considered;
- The decision to cease to look after the child will safeguard and promote their welfare;
- The IRO has been consulted with;
- The support that the child and parent receive via the Children's Social Care and partner agencies will be effective in supporting the child being safeguarded and promote the child's well being and best interests;
- If the child is not returning home and simply wants to cease being looked after, it must be explained in a letter that they understand their leaving care rights before making the decision to cease their status;
- If the child has been an eligible child, the appropriate requirements have been met and the child will also have a period of being relevant and entitled to a leaving care service.
Circumstances around ceasing, or discharging, a child from Care will vary as much as the original reasons for Accommodating the child, but the discharge of the child from being in Care should always be undertaken in a timely and planned way that reflects the needs and best interests of the child.
A prompt return to their parent or carer will invariably be appropriate and welcomed, especially if the return is part of the child's Care Plan and made possible because of the assessment that has already been undertaken, together with the ongoing involvement of the practitioner.
Where a parent or carer requests the child be returned to their care outside of the Care Plan (if one has been established), the parent or carer should be asked to undertake the return in a planned or negotiated way that reflects the needs and best interests of the child, (e.g. arrangements for spending time with families and those children love and care about to assist the return; individual counselling, etc), and to ensure appropriate support becomes available to them or the child. (Note: a lack of resources should not be a reason for delaying the child returning home).
However, when the local authority receives a request for the child to return home immediately, (under Section 20(8)) this must be responded to; any delay in so doing may bring severe criticism, and possible financial penalty, from a court.
Nevertheless, where a return to a parent/carer cannot be planned and also raises concern, (either because of the circumstances surrounding the reasons for Accommodation in the first place or because it does not take into account the safeguarding and the welfare of the child) in these circumstances:
- Careful consideration should be given as to whether the request puts the child at risk of immediate Significant Harm. If this is the case, then the procedure for seeking an Emergency Protection Order (or, where appropriate, Police Protection) should be invoked;
- The Group Manager must be informed, and an emergency legal meeting convened;
- If agreement to issue an urgent application to court is needed and falls outside of Best Practice and Scrutiny Forum, the Group Manager must inform the relevant Head of Service to seek outside forum agreement from two Heads of Service;
- The Nominated Manager's view should be sought;
- Where a review has been undertaken, the IRO's opinion should be sought;
- A Working Agreement with the parent or carer should be sought;
- Consider whether an urgent request and commissioning of a resource(s) or service for the child or parent / carer support should be sought e.g. Early Help, 'Relate' or Drug/alcohol advisory service etc;
- Other partner agencies, such as Schools, Education Department and Health should be advised of the change of circumstances;
- A Child in Need Planning Meeting should be promptly arranged.
Consideration may also be given as to whether the parent / carer's actions require the convening of an Initial or, (if the child is already subject to a Child Protection Plan), a Review Child Protection Case Conference (if the Child Protection Plan does not give such guidance). In situations where the returned home is not planned then an assessment should be completed without delay to consider the factors outlined in Section 2.1, Assessment and Section 2.2, Decision Making
Where a child who is not already considered to be a Child In Need but ceases to be in Care, the child will become a Child In Need, (see Child in Need Plans and Reviews Procedure).
A Child In Need meeting should be convened wherever possible and appropriate, with relevant agencies, and a Plan drawn up which will promote the safeguarding, welfare and best interests of the child, with the objective of ensuring that the return to the parent or carer is successful.
The Plan should:
- Take in to account the child's needs;
- Take into account the child's views;
- The parents' capacity to meet the needs of the child;
- The existing family and support network;
- The environmental/community factors – both positive and negative;
- Acknowledge the child's changed legal status;
- Establish other agencies roles and responsibilities with respect to the Plan.
The Child in Need Plan should be subject to Review (see Child In Need Plans and Reviews Procedure) to ensure the Plan remains relevant, appropriate and required or whether it should be 'stepped down' to Early Help.
Some children will cease to be looked after (in Care) under Section 20 but move into other permanent family placements through a Child Arrangements Order, Special Guardianship Order or Adoption. These children are entitled to support in their school or early years setting through the school's Designated Teacher who must have a plan that promotes and monitors their educational attainment.
See also Leaving Care and Transition Procedure.
An Eligible Young Person is someone who is:
- Aged 16 or 17, have been in Care for a period or periods totalling at least 13 weeks starting after their 14th birthday and ending at least one day after their 16th birthday, and are still in care. (This total does not include a series of pre-planned short-term placements of up to four weeks where the child has returned to the parent). There is a duty to support these young people up to the age of 18, wherever they are living.
Eligible Children are entitled to the same level of support as every other Child in Care, during this important part of their development and transition. (See Leaving Care and Transition Procedure).
In relation to an Eligible child, by their 16th birthday, the Local Authority must:
- Have carried out an assessment of needs with a view to determining what advice, assistance and support it would be appropriate to provide while looking after him and after it ceases to look after him;
- Prepare a Pathway Plan and review it regularly;
- Allocate an individual to undertake the role of Personal Adviser. This role is usually the Social Worker at age 16.
See Leaving Care and Transition Procedure, Personal Advisers.
The Assessment of Need underpins the young person's current Care Plan as the starting point for developing the Pathway Plan. The Assessment should take place from the young person being 15 years and 9 months and be in place for when the young person turns 16 years of age and no longer than 3 months after the young person’s 16th birthday. If the young person comes into Care after their 16th birthday, it should be started as soon as they become Eligible and completed within 3 months. It should not require significant additional work if the young person is settled with an up to date Care Plan.
This Assessment of Need must take into account the following:
- The wishes and feelings of the young person;
- His/her parents or other person with Parental Responsibility;
- The young person's health (including his/her physical, emotional and mental health) and development;
- The young person's continuing need for education, training or employment;
- The support that will be offered by his/her parents, friends and that all other Connected Persons will be able to give;
- The financial resources available to the young person, together with an assessment of his/her financial capability to manage their own finances;
- The extent to which the young person possesses the practical and other skills s/he will need to manage more independent living;
- The young person's need for continuing care, support and accommodation;
- The view of the educational establishment the young person attends and, if he/she has an Education, Health and Care Plan, the views of the authority that maintains the Care Plan (if different);
- The views of the IRO;
- The views of the Personal Adviser;
- The views of any person providing health care to the young person;
- The views any other person the Local Authority or young person feel is relevant.
Where the young person is seeking to discharge him/herself from care and live independently, the social worker in addition should evaluate and consider, (including the information from above), the degree to which the young person is able to live independently and the need for their continuing need for support and accommodation.
Following the completion of the assessment of need, the social worker should complete the Pathway Plan as soon as possible. The Pathway Plan should detail: which services will be provided, who will provide these services, what actions the social worker themselves need to undertake to secure such support, details of the support and involvement from family and other Connected Persons, timescales with regard to all of these. It is more than a 'statement of intent, it is a living document'.
The Pathway Plan must include what outcomes are to be achieved be with regard to the young person.
The Pathway Plan must specify the name of the Personal Adviser and detail the arrangements for visiting the young person. It should cover:
- Details of the young person's accommodation when s/he ceases to be in Care, and how this will be suitable in view of his/her assessed needs;
- The plans and arrangements for the young person's continuing education and training;
- What support the young person will require to enable him/her to develop and sustain appropriate family and social relationships;
- How the young person will be supported to build and develop his/her independent living skills;
- The financial support to be provided to enable the young person to meet accommodation and personal living costs;
- How the Authority will assist the young person in obtaining employment or other purposeful activity when s/he ceases to be in Care, taking into account his/her aspirations, skills and educational potential;
- The young person's financial capabilities and money management capacity, along with strategies to develop skills in this area;
- How the young person's physical, emotional and mental health needs will be met.
The Pathway Plan should identify a Contingency Plan.
The Pathway Plan must be reviewed:
- When the young person requests; or
- If the Personal Adviser considers it necessary; or
- At least once every 6 months.
The Plan should be adjusted accordingly with the young person's achievements, needs and maturity.
For young people with Eligible status, discharge from care should not take place until the Director of Children's Services has approved it.
In making the decision, the Director of Children's Services must be satisfied that:
- The young person's wishes and feelings have been ascertained and given due consideration;
- The decision to cease to look after a child will safeguard and promote their welfare;
- The support that the child and parent receive via the Children's Services Department and partner agencies, will be effective in supporting the child being safeguarded and promote the child's well being and best interests;
- The IRO has been informed;
- That as an Eligible child, there is an assessment of need (covering all the relevant areas); a Pathway Plan (detailing all the issues in Schedule 8 of the 2010 Regulations) and a Personal Advisor has been appointed.
An Eligible child will have the status and entitlements of a 'care leaver'. As such, they will be able to receive ongoing support, advice and encouragement to maximise their potential and will benefit from having direct support from their Personal Adviser up to the age of 21 years and up to the age of 25 if they want this.
In the event a child may come in to Care for a short period, fewer than 20 days, such as in a family crisis, it is not necessary for the Nominated Officer to approve their return home in these circumstances. However, the social worker and team manager must be satisfied that the return is (or remains) in the child's best interests and the arrangements will (continue to) safeguard and promote the child's welfare.
Nevertheless, there will be situations where such circumstances create concern with respect to the child's vulnerability and where it is appropriate to consider whether the child should have a Child Protection Plan (see Child Protection Enquiries (Section 47) Procedure) or be a Child In Need, (see Child in Need Plans and Reviews Procedure).
The process for ceasing to look after a child should also apply to Short Term Breaks (where the Child is considered to be Accommodated in these circumstances), unless the Child is subject to Regulation 48 (1989 Act, The Care Planning, Placement and Case Review Regulations 2010).
See also The Children Act 1989, Care Planning, Placement and Case Review Regulations.
In these instances the child will already be a Child in Need and the relevant Children’s Social Care Team and partner agencies will have a considerable level of understanding with respect to the child and the parent or carers with a good level of communication between the practitioners and the family/child.
Nevertheless, the practitioner and team manager should always remain alert and sensitive to changes within the family's circumstances.
See also Short Breaks Procedure.
See also Relinquished Children Procedure.
Parent(s) who wish to place their child for adoption by consent may voluntarily consent to the child being accommodated by the local authority under section 20 Children Act 1989 and the child may be placed in a local authority foster placement or an Early Permanence Placement. Parent(s) wishing to consent to their child being adopted cannot give their formal consent to the adoption until the child is at least six weeks old. Once the child is six weeks old the parents can give formal written consent for the local authority to place the child for adoption under section 19 Adoption and Children Act 2002 (“ACA 2002”) and can also give advance written consent to an adoption order being made by the court under section 20 ACA 2002. These formal written consents to adoption must be witnessed by a Reporting Officer from Cafcass. The parent(s) can withdraw their consent to the voluntary accommodation of their child under section 20 Children Act 1989 and /or formal consent to the adoption at any point up until an application has been issued for a final adoption order.
Any request for the child to be returned to the parent's care must be responded to promptly and urgent legal advice should always be sought in such circumstances prior to the return of the child. In all such instances an immediate evaluation of the circumstances should be undertaken by the local authority and must include any factors that may require a formal child protection risk assessment (see Framework for Decision-making: Right Help, at the Right Time by the Right Person and additional factors listed below). If the local authority considers that the appropriate threshold criteria are met, legal advice should be sought and consideration given to the issuing of an appropriate protective order such as an application for an Emergency Protection Order, Interim Care Order / Placement Order.
Note: Where the parent / guardian withdraws their consent to a plan of adoption it should not be automatically assumed that the threshold criteria under Section 31(2) will be satisfied and each case needs to be considered on its own facts. (See Re A O (care proceedings) 2016 EWFC 36). In addition to the matters listed in the Framework for Decision-making: Right Help, at the Right Time by the Right Person, in relinquished children cases specific matters for the social worker to consider also include:
- The reasons for the child being relinquished;
- Any previous personal history of the parent or family;
- The period of time elapsed between the child being relinquished and the parent's change of mind; and
- The reasons for the parent's change of mind;
- The contact / interest expressed by the parent during their separation;
- Issues of bonding by the parent;
- Preparation for caring for the child;
- Proposed caring environment / home circumstances and support for the parent;
- Support network and whether wider family are aware of existence of the child.
This list is not exhaustive and the information provided as part of the Accommodation and relinquishing procedure will be key in identifying whether safeguarding processes should be invoked.
The social worker and team manager should also determine whether the child should be considered as a Child In Need if they are to be returned to the parent(s), (if the child has been accommodated for fewer than 20 days), but irrespective of this, there should be clear communication and liaison with GP and health visiting services in respect of the circumstances of the child.
Note: where the child has been accommodated by the Local Authority for more than 20 days, then the permission of the Nominated Officer is required for the child to be returned to the parent's care and due consideration be given to the Review decisions. (See Section 2, Children Accommodated under Section 20 and Relinquished Children Procedure).
In all cases the IRO must be informed of the request for the child to be returned to the care of the parent(s) and the administration / processes in section 6 below should followed.
In circumstances where there are no grounds for the issuing of proceedings or taking protective measures, arrangements will need to be made for the prompt return of the child. Consideration will need to be given as to whether any other support services or referrals to other agencies should be offered to the child / family e.g. on a Child in Need basis.
If a decision has been made that protective measures do not need to be taken:
Where the child is not yet placed with prospective adopters - and the parent or guardian informs the local authority that they wish the child to be returned to their care, the child should be returned to the parent(s) / guardian within 7 days, unless the Local Authority has either made an application for a Placement Order or a decision has been made to apply for a Placement Order.
Where the child is placed for adoption - and the parent or guardian requests the return of the child, the child should be returned to the agency within 14 days, beginning with the day on which the notice was given, unless the authority has either made an application for a Placement Order or a decision is made to apply for a Placement Order. As soon as the child is returned to the local authority / Adoption Agency by the prospective adopters, the child must return to the parent / guardian.
As with all changing circumstances, the practitioner should:
- Ensure that a Child in Need Plan is drawn up and distributed to all relevant professionals/agencies involved;
- Establish a Working Agreement with the parent or carer where relevant;
- Ensure the child is appropriately supported through the transitional phase, including any emotional support, ensuring belongings, mementos, information and other discussions with the parent or carer;
- Ensure that the parent or carer is appropriately supported through the transitional phase;
- Where education has been an issue for a child or young person, and they have necessarily had to change school, ensure their transition back to their education setting is supported by the setting, the family and promoted with the child or young person;
- Ensure that all partner agencies are made aware of the change of legal status of the child, particularly the school or nursery, the Health Visitor and GP;
- Where the placement has been out of the local authority, the Local Authority where the child was placed should be informed of the move of the child;
- Where there has been another Integrated Care Board (ICB) involved the ICB should be promptly advised of the child's move so that the medical documents can be transferred. The child's home ICB should also be informed of the change so that the child's Health Plan can be progressed without delay;
- Ensure that the foster family searches team is informed, and where the provider is an independent provider, that notice is given as soon as possible and within the commissioning/contractual arrangements;
- Inform the IRO;
- Ensure that the electronic record is updated to amend the status and address details etc. and decision making is clearly recorded on the child’s record;
- Ensure that School and Health records are effectively transferred (where appropriate) to support a smooth transition of information.
Last Updated: October 14, 2024
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