How Cafcass Officers Help Children

The Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS) is a public body that primarily is charged with looking after the welfare of children who are involved in proceedings centred around the Family Court.

Set up in 2001, Cafcass provides children with fair representation in a family court and also offers their families with advice and support where needed.

What a Cafcass Officer Does

During the separation or divorce, it may become necessary for the Family Court to become involved if both parents disagree about how the children should be looked after. If this is the case, and such a matter comes before the Family Court, then a Cafcass officer may be called upon to mediate between both parents and also act as the voice for the children.

Children in Care

Sometimes it is necessary to take a child or children into care because both parents are deemed unfit to look after them, or if one parent is no longer around and the other parent cannot cope. The local authority will be responsible for rehousing the children with Foster Parents or they may be placed in a local authority run children’s home.

If an application for care or supervision is requested, a Cafcass officer may be named as the child’s guardian. They are responsible for making some decisions that affect a child's quality of life, such as schooling etc. They cannot, however, make decisions which involve medical issues, such as the administering of medication or authorising of medical procedures.

Duty of Care to Children

A Cafcass officer has a ‘Duty of Care’ to any child or children under their supervision. This means that they are charged with making sure the children are:

• Safe
• Healthy
• In comfortable and safe surroundings
• Socialising and mixing with other children
• Making every effort with educational studies

Other Duties

There may be occasions when families break down and cannot make decisions themselves or cannot reach an agreement which is satisfactory to all. When this happen they can call upon the Family Court for guidance and a ruling, if it is deemed necessary. A Cafcass officer is assigned to them in order to talk them through the process and to offer help and advice.

The Cafcass officer will be on hand to ensure that the child or children involved are not undergoing too much emotional stress as the result of the ensuing situation, and can make recommendations to the magistrate in the court proceedings if he or she feels it is right and proper to do so.