What Are my Legal Rights?

Q.My children have been taken into care, social services have said it is respite care and that they are not on any register. I was asked to sign some paper work but was not given a copy.

My children were extremely upset at the time and the social worker thought it best to just leave. Social services will not disclose the location of my very young family.

What are my legal rights?

A.

Unfortunately the law is on the side of social services if you have signed some paperwork. It is likely that the paperwork you signed was an Order issued by the Family Proceedings Court giving Social Services temporary custody of the children however they are not the wards of Social Services but are wards of your Local Authority.

Initially what should have happened was Social Services should have applied for an Emergency Order to have the children taken into care and then they will have had to go back to Family Proceedings Court to get a care order. You should have been made aware of this from the outset so that you could have voiced your objections or petitioned the Family Proceedings Court to return a different ruling.

Once the children have been removed from your care and been placed in the care of the Local Authority, Social Services are not obliged – by law – to give you details of your children’s whereabouts for their own safety even though from your point of view the children are perfectly safe in your presence. This is designed to protect not only the children but the identity of any foster parents the children may be placed with however temporary.

Your first point of recourse should be Social Services especially if you were not provided with copies of all relevant paperwork. In any instance of taking children into custody you should be provided with copies of all orders issued or affected so that you are fully aware of your legal standing. Social services should give you exact details of why the children were removed from your care and qualify what exactly they mean by respite care. They should also be giving you details of any Family Proceedings Court hearings that are due to take place.

It is best to seek representation from a solicitor who specialises in family law and ask them to act as a mediator between you and your Local Authority. They will also be able to obtain copies of all orders and documentation relating to your case and clarify what you signed and what you agreed to.

He or she may also be able to petition the Family Proceedings Court for a hearing that clarifies everyone’s position in the matter and may also bring about a scenario where visits – albeit supervised ones – can be arranged.