Help interim care order

[Tweetypie]

Hi just looking for some advice hoping someone can help me. So there is 2 things to the case. 1 is that my dayghter 7yr old licked other daughters X 5yr old(was one lick) she said she seen a video on youtube a animated japenese one i think its called manga they refer to it (when my eldest now 17 was living at home she now lives with her nana she used to watch manga and was openly a lesbian) i addressed this incident immediately with 7yr old told her that its wrong and told her no youtube ipad etc as inwanted her to understand that this behaviour isnt right there was also there friend present at the time which the mother was the one who told me about the incident. Then Apparently my 5 year old daughter told school that her father has licked my 7yr old daughter and my 14yr old daughter X on the 17th june the day the children got taken my 5 year old has significant speech problems to I have a recent letter from speech therapist and school report confirming this so I don't understand where this accusation has come from which the police and social services asked them if it was true on the 17th of June which they denied. The police wanted to carry on the investigation and arrested me for child neglect for letting it happen not safeguarding my children my bail condotions were 1. Not allowed unsupervised contact and 2. For me not to contact my children. So i had to sign yhe section 20 so i could atleast still have my say with the children. Police arranged 5yr old to have a pepa assessment due to her speech amd understanding which has finished now and said they can't interview her so it looks like there going to close the case and that's why social services are going for the interim order as when the police close case I can withdraw the section 20 as I will have no bail conditions and they want to keep the children why they do there assessments which I have told them that i am going to put safeguarding procedures why they do there assessment so that they can return home which they said would be up to the judge am in the middle of sorting out the dining room as my room so each child has there own room why there assessments are happing. And the 2 younger father is permanently moving into his flat as he stayed at mine 5 times a week so that the risk isn't at home if they get to come home.
What are my chances of getting the children home why they do there assessments? Do u think they will easily get the children on interim order my 5yr old is so skinny you can see the stress in her face as she was never away from my side she is really struggling. I miss my children massively and want them home where they should be. I do get supervised contact twice a week and they can see how much the children love me and that I don't neglect them.
So sorry about the long essay I've tried to cut it down as much as I can.

[Suzie, FRG Adviser]

Dear Tweetypie

Welcome to the parents’ discussion board and thank you for your post. My name is Suzie and I am Family Rights Group’s online adviser. I am very sorry to hear of the difficulties that you and your family are experiencing. Please accept my apologies for the delay in responding to your post.

When you posted, your daughters were in foster care under a section 20 voluntary arrangement. This is because of concerns about potential child sexual abuse. You explained that there was a current police investigation and you were subject to bail conditions. However, your understanding was that the police would not be pursuing the criminal investigation and your bail conditions would therefore end. Children’s Services were beginning care proceedings as they want the children to remain in foster care while they assess the situation further and in recognition that you can end your agreement to the voluntary arrangement.

You have explained that your 5 year old daughter has additional needs in relation to her speech and understanding. She has had a specialist assessment which has confirmed that it would not be appropriate for her to be interviewed by the police.

You are wondering if the court will agree to the children returning home while the assessments are undertaken. You are trying to put your own safeguarding measures in place such as providing your children with their own rooms and your younger children’s father is moving out of the family home to his own accommodation to minimise risk. It is positive that you are thinking hard about what you can do to reduce risk and put the children first.

We have specialist information on our website about child sexual abuse that you may find helpful and resources for children with disabilities or special educational needs. I would also encourage you to look at the Parents Protect and NSPCC website information here and here too as they offer targeted advice for parents about how to to help children if they are struggling with their behaviour and to safeguard them from sexual abuse.

I can see that you are missing your children very much, you are worried about your youngest daughter and understandably want the girls to be returned to your care.

Unfortunately, I cannot say what the outcome of the court hearing will be. You have provided a summary of the situation but there are lots of unknowns including about any relevant history or your partner’s circumstances. The court will have fuller information to allow them to make a ‘temporary’ plan for your children, if needed, while further assessments are directed.

However, it may be helpful for you to look at this explanation of how the court makes decisions for children and, in particular, this advice about interim care orders (ICO) . Some children do live at home with their parent/s even if there is an ICO in place but in your situation the children are already living elsewhere so what you are seeking is a return home under an ICO.

I hope you are now being represented by a children law accredited solicitor who will be best placed to advise you on what to expect at court and to put forward your arguments to the court. Please see these tips on working with a solicitor as you may find it helpful.

Your children are currently looked after and will remain looked after if they stay in section 20 accommodation or if the court make an ICO. It is important that you know what to expect and that you are able to participate in the processes. This information sets out what needs to happen under S20 and this information when there is a court order in place.

You may want to ask for a family group conference to be arranged to help your family network be involved and draft a safe family plan. You can find out more here.

Your situation may already have moved on by now. If you need any further advice or want to talk through your situation please post back or call our freephone advice line on 0808 8010366, Mon to Fri (except the bank holiday), 9.30 am to 3.00 pm.

Best wishes

Suzie