Taken from Community Care Inform (08/06/2016)

Top tips for preparing balance-sheet evidence

A barrister explains what the family courts are really looking for in social work analysis of placement options for a child

By Joanna Silman on June 6, 2016 in Children, Legal, Social work skills (Community Care)

Preparing for court can be daunting. Written evidence often needs to be put together against the clock to meet strict timetables. The knowledge that it will be scrutinised by counsel and the judge, and the possibility of cross-examination can make the task even more pressurised.

The following tips to help children's social workers involved in care proceedings are taken from Community Care Inform's guide to the balance-sheet approach by Michael Jones - a barrister at Deans Court chambers in Manchester who represents both local authorities and families.

The guide is based on the landmark Re B-S and Re B judgments and subsequent decisions which have clarified the courts' expectations of social work evidence when care orders are sought.  

Practical examplesIt's not about the format, it's about the analysis

Don't just think of a balance sheet in terms of putting your evidence into a pros and cons table. It is the analysis and the detailed content of the evidence that is so important, rather than the use of a table. Focus on the aim of the approach which is to help professionals and, in turn, the courts to analyse and weigh up each realistic option.

Give the detail

For example, it is not enough to state that a factor against a child remaining with their parents is the risk of significant harm. What is the risk based on? Explain the history, the work that has been done with the family - including support offered - and their understanding of the risk of harm. Are there ways that the risks could be managed? Covering all angles means you have less to fear from cross-examination and addressing the questions that a judge might ask makes their job easier.

How could each realistic option be supported?

Providing detail of the support that has been offered in the past and could be offered in the future in any family placement is crucial to weighing up whether that placement is viable. Your analysis needs to show what support could be put in place to make an option work - and, if appropriate, why this would not be sufficient.

Have you considered the human rights implications?

While there is no set requirement to refer to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) article 8 rights of the children or the parents to family life, it signals to the court that you are aware of the significant human rights implications of removing a child from their birth family and the lifelong impact the decision would have.

Help the judge to make a holistic analysis

Your analysis may indicate that all of the realistic alternatives (for example, a family or kinship care or long-term fostering placement) to adoption are not appropriate. But even if the other realistic options are not considered viable, that is not enough for a judge to conclude that adoption is in the best interests of the child. The detriments as well as the strengths of adoption need to be analysed in the social work evidence too so that everything can be weighed up holistically.