Care proceedings and social services

Child in Need and Child Protection Plans

Beck Fitzgerald specialises in advising and assisting parents when a local authority has become involved with their family and this can include when a child has been placed on a Child in Need plan or Child Protection plan.  A child in need plan can be made if a child requires extra support or if parents are struggling to meet all of their child’s needs. The local authority may need to place a child on a child protection plan if they have concerns that a child may be at risk of harm.

More detailed information on Child in Need, Child Protection Plans and Local Authority duties can be found here

Please contact us now on contact@beckfitzgerald.co.uk or 020 7101 3090.

PLO / pre-proceedings process

If you have received a letter from the local authority, often called a PLO letter or pre-proceedings you will need to ensure that you take this letter to a solicitor. This letter will detail the local authority’s concerns about your child and outline steps that you will need to take to avoid court proceedings.  Beck Fitzgerald specialises in representing parent’s in the PLO process.

More information can be found here 

Please contact us now on contact@beckfitzgerald.co.uk or 020 7101 3090.

Care and supervision proceedings

Where a local authority is concerned that a child is experiencing or is at risk of serious harm it may apply to the court for a care order for a supervision order.  Within these proceedings, the Court will decide what support the family need, where a child should live both in the short term and long term and the type of order that should be made. 

Sometimes the local authority will ask you to agree to your child being looked after as an alternative to court proceedings. This is often known as section 20 accommodation.

Beck Fitzgerald specialise in representing parents, children and wider family members in care and supervision proceedings.

More detailed information on the types of orders that can be made in care proceedings can be found here.  

More information about a local authority providing accommodation for children in need can be found here

Please contact us now on contact@beckfitzgerald.co.uk or 020 7101 3090

Kinship / special guardianship

Within care proceedings, family members or friends can be appointed as long term carers for a child until they are 18. This can be as a special guardian under a Special guardianship Order (often referred to as an SGO) or a kinship foster carer under a Care Order.

Beck Fitzgerald specialise in representing and providing legal advice to wider family members and prospective carers who are considering putting themselves forwards as long terms carers.

More information can be found here 

Please contact us now on contact@beckfitzgerald.co.uk or 020 7101 3090.

Adoption

At Beck Fitzgerald we know that adopting a child or being involved in adoption proceedings can be enormously difficult. We have a team of specialist lawyers who have extensive experience of representing parties in adoption cases. We hope to make the process for you as clear and straightforward as possible and aim to reduce the stress that being involved in litigation can bring.

For more detailed information see here 

Please contact us now on contact@beckfitzgerald.co.uk or 020 7101 3090

For more information download our resource packs

If you would like more information about how we can help you please call us on 020 7101 3090 or
email us on contact@beckfitzgerald.co.uk