You need to take care that your child does not get caught in the middle or feels pressured into taking sides. This can be extremely upsetting for children and can damage their relationship with both parents. This can very often be obvious to the professionals working with you. In extreme circumstances it can be seen as ‘alienating behaviours’. Divorce and separation. Often called ‘private law’. It is where parents or carers cannot agree on arrangements for their children.

It is important to be accepting in these circumstances even if the child’s wishes cannot in the end be met – at least they will have felt heard and understood. Parents, as adults, are the people who need to take responsibility for making final decisions together, and where they are not able to do this independently, the courts will make the decisions. As an Assistant Service Manager, you also work closely with the Service Manager to continually improve the quality of the work undertaken by Family Court Advisers. You’ll provide regular group supervision, training sessions, reflective supervision and informal coaching or mentoring to Family Court Advisers, as well as quality assuring case work and practice. This will contribute directly to improving outcomes for children and their families. You also support the Service Manager with case allocations, duty rotas and general staff support. They explain at the outset that they will listen carefully to understand experiences and perspectives of the parties to the application, and that they may seek the views and perspectives of others who know the child and their parents. They form their own independent professional assessment and share the reasons for their recommendations. Children may or may not ask directly or clearly for what they need. They may, instead, hide their feelings and they may or may not realise they are doing this.

Your child’s body language can offer you a better idea of how they are feeling. For example, if they are finding it difficult to look at you, they might be feeling nervous. When you are having a conversation with them about your separation, keep an eye on any changes in body language, like crossed arms, to identify if your child is struggling. Cafcass had its first national Ofsted inspection in March 2014 and the overall judgement was ‘good’ with an ‘outstanding’ judgement for leadership and governance. [26] Cafcass had its second national Ofsted inspection in March 2018 and Ofsted rated Cafcass as 'outstanding'. [27] All children benefit from their parents or the adults they trust helping them to figure out what their feelings are so that these feelings do not come out in ways that harm themselves or others. Children’s Guardians are qualified social workers, trained and experienced in working with children and families. They are appointed as experts by the court to represent the rights and interests of the child and to provide the court with independent advice about the child’s best interests. They are not part of local authority children’s social care services or the courts. They appoint their own solicitor to represent the child in court. They do not always agree with the local authority application or their plan for the child.

Depending on their age and understanding, involve your child in making choices about the changes that will take place. Seeing things differently’ is about considering the situation the way your child does and keeping your own feelings about the other parent separate. Young people who have gone through this this have titled their book of their experiences, ‘In Our Shoes’.The CIAF provides a framework for practice. It is not intended as an instruction manual or to undermine the professional independence of the FCA and Guardian in individual proceedings. While the use of some resources and aids is required by policy, the framework does not direct which practice aid to use in what circumstances. Professional discretion is required to select the most appropriate resource/aid. It was a few years ago and it was hard for me and my brother. The whole thing was scary because we didn’t know what was happening or what was going to happen.

Four key areas are repeatedly identified as being key areas to focus on improving the quality of assessment, these are: engaging the child in person, information gathering, critical analysis, and inter-professional working. These four elements are supported by careful use of the practice aids and resources in CIAF. see and engage with the child to understand what and who is important to them, what life is like for them and to ascertain their wishes and feelings; Ellie, a member of the Family Justice Young People’s Board, shares her experience of the breakdown of her parents’ relationship and how we helped when her parents went to a family court. The Assessment and Child’s Plan is the section of the child’s record where FCAs and Guardians record their thinking, developing analysis and reasoning for the child. It is where the manager’s oversight is also recorded. Talking to your child about their other parent, before you understand how you feel, can be counterproductive. One way you can process your feelings is by writing them down, which can help you feel more in control.It’s important you make a note of this, so you don’t forget. You will also receive a text message reminder on the day of your telephone interview. Children’s Guardians are experts appointed by the court to help the judge make the best possible decision for the child. They do this by: act out’ by becoming rebellious or change the way they normally play so that it is angrier, or begin to shift their social groups to people with whom they feel they have emotions in common, so they are in an angrier or rebellious group; physical abuse, which is inflicting pain or injury to a child and includes giving or forcing a child to ingest harmful substances, such as drugs, alcohol or poisonous substances like salt; sometimes recommending an additional expert to advise the court, like a psychiatrist/psychologist or paediatrician; and

We have been impressed by the valuable work undertaken by the Cafcass Young People’s Board. They provide an important perspective on the work of the family justice system and offer an intelligent and energetic challenge to the board of Cafcass. We believe that this work should be maintained through a Young People’s Board for the Family Justice Service, with a remit to consider issues in both public and private law and to report directly to the service.’ [15] For this role, we need you to have expert knowledge of children’s social work, including safeguarding, statutory responsibilities and assessment frameworks. honest and ongoing: for those things you are not yet sure you can make happen Your child will be helped best by you saying “We don’t know yet, but we will work on it” – and keeping them updated as and when you can give your child more information, such as you want to move house to an area where they can still attend the same school and keep their friends, but you do not know if that is possible yet. You will update them as soon as you know. Here are three easy steps to help your child feel as comfortable as possible when talking about how they feel about your decision to separate: With approximately 75% of our workforce qualified Social Workers, we’re the largest employer of Social Workers in England. Whether you’re looking for a frontline role or a managerial role, take a look at our current vacancies. If we aren’t currently recruiting for a role that interests you then you might want to register for our National Social Work Talent Pool.Cafcass' function is set out in Section 12(1) Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000 which states: This guidance supports the Child Safeguarding policy which all practice staff must follow. It sets out the requirements placed by Cafcass, on its staff and contractors, relating to its statutory function of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. It details the procedures to be followed when completing a section 16A risk assessment; making a referral to children’s services; taking urgent action to protect a child; and responding to an allegation made against a person who works with children. It alerts staff to the requirements placed upon them in respect of complex safeguarding and child protection matters, for example child exploitation, radicalisation and female genital mutilation, and the resources available to support staff in this area of work. This will help you to think about things from your child’s point of view. Managing your emotions will help you understand and respond to your child’s needs, wishes, feelings, and questions. Have they been acting differently; for example, misbehaving at school, or falling out with friends? Family Court Advisers become involved in cases when children are subject to an application for care or supervision proceedings by social services (public law) or in an adoption applications. Cafcass also provide assistance when parents who are separating or divorcing can’t agree on arrangements for their children (private law).