Rebecca Davies summarises judgment in N (Refusal of Placement Order) [2023] EWCA Civ 364 for Family Law Week about an appeal against a refusal to grant a placement order.
The Court of Appeal reiterated that a linear approach to the options for a child (consider parents, wider family, then adoption if those are discounted) is wrong in law.
The judgment also deals with arguments presented in most cases for adoption over long-term foster care for young children.
In many instances now, local authorities are adopting a ‘copy and paste’ approach to the Re B-S analysis required by social work evidence templates. This is clearly insufficient (as well as leading to mistakes and potential data breaches) and must be rectified without delay.
The case acts as a reminder for all working within this sector to scrutinise any care plan and the available options to ensure that, particularly when the care plan is one of adoption, the rigorous legal test is met.
Read the full summary on Family Law Week.