CYP Now - Editorial: Give Cafcass the time and space to succeed

The last 12 months have been pretty dreadful for Cafcass, the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service. After a damning select committee report, the chairman left the service, and the entire board was forced to resign. Throughout 2004, the organisation has had to deal with a recalcitrant board member, and an ongoing a recruitment crisis, all of which culminated in Theresa May pledging to scrap the service if the Conservatives won the next election.

None of this is new as Cafcass has been plagued by staff disputes, severe delays in allocating cases, and regular, vocal criticism from MPs and the media from its very inception.

As a result, the service's crucial role in ensuring the wellbeing of children seems to have been drowned out. With its remit to safeguard and promote the welfare of children involved in family court proceedings, Cafcass should ensure that children and young people's voices are properly heard in such proceedings.

So it's crucial that the organisation starts to deliver. And there are indications that Cafcass has taken a long, hard look at its shortcomings and is beginning to turn itself around (News, p5).

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