You are a Children and Families social worker for Boroughshire County Council Children’s services. A new referral is allocated to you as follows:
The McLeod family consists of Sonia and her three children, Anita (15 years), Ben (8 years), and Caitlin (2 years). There were difficulties during Ben’s birth leading to cerebral palsy (he can only walk short distances, and has mild learning disabilities). Sonia suffers from chronic alcoholism, and often struggles to mee the needs of the children as a result.
The three children are very close to each other. Anita is particularly close to Caitlin as she has been her primary carer for large parts of her babyhood. Sonia’s mother (maternal grandmother) lives 50 miles away and does not drive, although she tries to see the children when she can. Anita and Caitlin share the same father, Alex, who visits the children about once per year. Ben’s father died before Ben was born.
Consider what your position would be at this point in the case. What information do you need and why?
Parental Responsibility (‘PR’):
Students should identify who in the scenario has PR under the Children Act 1989 for the children as no action can be taken without the consent of a person with PR unless the children are in imminent danger of serious harm.
Section 2 of the 1989 Act states that the mother of the children will always have PR. So it would be safe to say that Sonia will have PR.
The father’s position is more complicated.
Ben’s father, has passed away so there is no PR issue in relation to him.
Alex is father to Anita and Caitlin. The first question to ask is; were Sonia and Alex married to one another at the time of the birth of either child? The pair have different surnames but that does not mean they were not married. The scenario does not tell us anything about marriage, so students would need to identify this as necessary further information. If they were married at the time of the birth, then S 2 (1) of the 1989 Act gives Alex PR for the children. If they were not married,at the time of birth of either children, Alex may have PR if he is registered as a parent on the birth certificate under s 4 (1) (a) of the Act, has entered a PR agreement with the mother under S 4 (1) (b) of the 1989 Act, or obtain a PR order from the family court by S 4 (1) (c) of the Act.
Alex may also have PR for Ben as a step parent by way of entering a PR agreement with the mother under S 4 (1) (b) of the 1989 Act, or obtain a PR order from the family court by S 4 (1) (c) of the Act
Section 17 child in need services will also need to be dealt with and some consideration given to the facts and applying the S17 (10) definitions. On this, Ben is a child in need as he is disabled (as per s 17 (10) (c). If students have identified the children as being in need, they should then outline the duty that flows from this, in other words, the S 17 duty to provide services to children and their family if the child is in need. What information can you find in the short scenario that supports this?