Duration of care proceedings falls to record low
Joe Lepper
Monday, October 3, 2016
Courts are dealing with care proceedings in record time, but are still failing to meet the government's 26-week target, according to latest figures.
Family Court statistics for April to June this year show that the average time for completing care and supervision proceedings was 27 weeks, the lowest since the figures were first compiled in 2011.
The latest figures are down by 3.5 days on the first quarter of 2016 and two weeks down on figures for the same period last year.
This is part of a continuing fall since a high of 55.1 weeks, recorded in 2011.
The percentage of cases that are disposed in 26 weeks, a target set in April 2014 through the Children and Families Act, remains at 60 per cent for the fourth quarter in a row, the figures also reveal.
This latest decrease follows the introduction of a fresh approach earlier this year by the Association of Directors of Children's Services (ADCS) and the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass) to speed up cases.
This included updating the Social Work Evidence Template, which was launched in 2014 to improve the quality of social work reports. Updates included creating welfare checklists to ensure all relevant details are presented to courts.
Cafcass chief executive Anthony Douglas, said: "This data shows how hard all family justice professionals have been working to ensure swift protection for children, despite the massive pressures in the system.
"It shows the sector's ongoing commitment to minimising delay as much as possible. The reduction has been achieved by using practices with a proven track record, such as case progression, analytical reports and thorough collation of evidence."
Jenny Coles, chair of the ADCS's families, communities and young people policy committee, added: "The reason the time taken to complete proceedings is reducing is that the whole system has worked together to deliver more timely justice for families. Local authorities are carrying out more effective pre-proceedings work; courts are using experts in a different way; and there is a growing emphasis, across the board, on problem-solving rather than being tied by rigid procedure."
