Removed from family home by Police & Children Services

[heartbrokenfather]

My view is that if the courts felt that the children were of the age and able to give evidence in court via live video-link, then surly the children are of age to be able to voice their own opinions.

But we all know that children's services will twist and bend any rules and or regulations to there own needs.

[Murray72]

Heartbrokenfather, did CS indicate to you if they would be taking any legal action depending on the outcome of the criminal trial??

[heartbrokenfather]

The only time the local authority (children's services) mentioned legal action is that if I was to return home and or have any unsupervised direct or indirect contact with any of the children.

As far as I am aware they have not said anything about legal action other than this.

But to answer your question that no local authority (children's services) has not mentioned legal action depending on the outcome of the criminal trial.

But then the local authority (children's services) has not been and is still not forthcoming with supplying me documents that I have requested and I am entitled too.

[Murray72]

Ok, I am not sure if they will disclose any plans for legal action etc until they serve the papers (they do like to catch people by surprise) if they have had a legal rep at any meetings then it maybe something they consider. I have not read all your posts but if CS have the tiniest doubt your wife will not keep you away from the family home they may go down this route.
Be prepared for anything if they decide on a finding of fact hearing.

[heartbrokenfather]

I can say that any of the meetings I have had directly with children's services have not had anyone from the local authority's legal team, But as you know when it comes to the child protection conferences I have been refused to be in the room at the same time as my wife so I do not know for sure who is or who is not in the room at the time.

*** RE-EDIT ***
I did put more details in this post but once again it seems that my posts are being edited, and details being removed.

I did quote my local news paper, as my case was listed, but this has been removed from my post.
I do not see how quoting the local news paper and once again removing all names, etc from the quote would be in any way a breach of this forums rules.

[heartbrokenfather]

I have not done any updates for a while now, as I have had other matters to to deal with.

I am still waiting on the minutes or any documentation from the child protection conference held in November, but as per normal the local authority is not forthcoming.

I am still having great problems in finding a family / child law solicitor to take on my case as there is no legal aid funding in place unless the local authority start proceedings.

But on the plus side since my criminal trial came to an end with the judge directing not guilty verdicts, things now seem to be moving forward in regards to contact with the children.

Phone contact with the children permitted once a week. Phone contact was to be supervised by a friend of the family, and the children had to talk to me via speaker-phone, each of the children are able to talk to me for approximately 5 minutes each. my wife was not permitted to over see or supervise the phone contact.

It is nice to speak to the children while they are at home, you can hear that they are more relaxed in there voices.
The only trouble has been that trying to talk to children while they are on speaker-phone is very hit and miss, as they do not stay still and or talk directly into the speaker-phone, so I have found myself needing to ask them to repeat themselves and the children quickly get board of repeating themselves.

The other main problem is that the local authority stipulated on what day phone contact was to take place, and the friend of the family who has to supervise the phone contact works shifts so there is no guarantee that they will be available on said day, and as such the children have had to miss phone contact on several occasions.

The children are still having weekly face-to-face contact with me every week at the contact centre for one and a half hours.

Contact used to be supervised by two contact supervisors, shortly after the end of the criminal trial, contact is no longer being supervised by the contact centre stuff, it is now being supervised by two staff members from the Children In Need team.

Christmas day I was extremely surprised and happy when all of the children turned up at my parents home, and I was able to stay for several hours.
The local authority had not made me aware of this arrangement, and put me in a very difficult position, as the local authority has clearly stated that I can not have direct or indirect contact with any of the children without prior consent.

My wife was not permitted to stay with the children, she just dropped off and collected the children.

In the new year the children also had contact with me at my parents home, supervised by my parents, I was once again not informed by the local authority that this was going to happen.

Contact is now once again taking place at the contact centre and being supervised by two members of staff from the children in need team.

[Suzie, FRG Adviser]

Dear Heartbroken father,

Welcome back to the forum! I am glad that you had such positive contact at your parent’s home over Christmas and New Year. Your parents would have been assessed by children services to ensure that contact is safe for your children. Could you suggest that further contact visits take place at your parents rather than the contact centre?

You describe the difficulties that you have with telephone contact. Telephone contact can be very difficult to supervise and, as in your situation, can be unsatisfactory. You should let the social worker know that contact cannot always take place on the day stipulated. Can your friend give details of his/shift patterns so that another timetable is set up?
Have you got any idea when your contact is going to be reviewed? Will you have input into that?

In relation to you not getting the minutes of the review yet-all I can suggest is to request in writing from the coordinator. The most important thing is that you have a copy of the child protection plan-so that you can ensure that it is followed.
Best wishes,

Suzie

[heartbrokenfather]

This week I have had a meeting with the current social worker, about contact as well as other things.

During this meeting, I have now heard the threats first hand by the current social worker.

If I was to return to the family home, or carry on a relationship with my wife the local authority would take legal action to remove the children from my wife's care, and will start care proceedings. at no point would the current social worker support me being able to return to my family, This was all said with a smug grin.

The current social worker says that due to the allegations made that the social worker feels that I am a threat to all of the children and my wife.

Also during this meeting the social worker said they have access to and have read all of the children's ABE interviews. If the social worker really has access to and has read the full ABE interviews then they will know what social are claiming to have happened, and what the children have said do not match.

As the social worker point out they are the children's social workers, and therefore work for/with the children and be-leave everything they say, as children can not lie.

For the last 426 days I have been fighting to reunited the family as a whole. All of the children want me to come home. What my wife wants I really do not know, as I feel she feels she has no choose but to follow children's services orders.

All the children and I want is to be home and a family again, if children's services still feel the need to be involved then so be it.

[Murray72]

heartbrokenfather,

I am very sorry to hear that CS still have concerns regarding your return to the family home, and this is one huge challenge to overcome. I suggest that now may be the time to be realistic about any prospect of your family living as one for the immediate future. I have chosen my words carefully and I do not wish to discourage you from fighting for your family to be together. I can only offer advise based on my personal experience of CS and the devastating effect care proceedings had on my children directly.
CS became involved in my family in 2006 by June 2009 they had removed my youngest child on EPO and gained an ICO, this was with evidence of a private detective paid for by the LA to follow me and my ex partner, (once the LA had evidence I was dishonest the Judge and Guardian supported the care order application). Reading between the lines of your post you have some idea that your wife would accept you home, and probably some level of contact between you both is taking place. At the moment your children are in the best place at home with Mum, If your children are already suffering you can only imagine the difficulties they face if placed in FC with strangers (my child spent 4 years), seeing Mum in a contact centre this can be as low as 6 times per year (as was the intention of CS in my case, they didn't achieve this).

I am not for one moment suggesting you walk away from your family, however without any realistic prospect of CS supporting your reunification to the family home perhaps it is time to re-evaluate your goals.

[ange301126]

Dear Heartbrokenfather,I understand how annoying it is when one cooperates to the best of ones ability, go for assessments and so on, only to be told you don't understand concerns and refuse to work with professionals. Now they have threatened legal action to remove the children to your face,why don't you ask Suzie if that is enough under the law to apply for legal funding and active advocacy and intervention.

If they ask you to sign any letters,I trust you will decline.