Long term foster care

[Cass123]

I'm asking for a friend basically she has been Tod by her solicitor To agree to put kids in ltfc for 6 months till they can prove they r stable I've never herd of this my self has any one else kids r currently in fc and on ico

[Miserylovescompany2]

Hello

Is your friend near the end of proceedings? The six months reference could be to revoke the care order if granted. Legal aid at this point is like gold dust. I would suggest she asks her solicitor to explain her options fully. Does the solicitor think there is a chance after the six months have elapsed and are they still offering to assist? Or will she be on her own?

Many parents are left having to represent themselves at this point after proceedings have concluded - without the legal support or understanding.

What ages are the children - do you think her situation can be turned around in this time frame? What does she need to prove is stable and how can this be maintained?

[Suzie, FRG Adviser]

I'm asking for a friend basically she has been Tod by her solicitor To agree to put kids in ltfc for 6 months till they can prove they r stable I've never herd of this my self has any one else kids r currently in fc and on ico

Dear Cass123

Thank you for your post, I see you joined the forum some time ago but have only recently posted, welcome to the parents discussion forum.
My name is Suzie, online adviser at Family Rights Group.

I see from your post that you are seeking advice for a friend who appears to be involved in care proceedings before the court. It is not clear from your post what stage the case has reached. Is your friend having any assessments of her parenting or does she needs to have counselling or therapy?

Since her solicitor has all the information about her case he or she will be in the best position to advise your friend. She is being asked to agree to long term foster care which suggests that her solicitor may not think she has a strong case for the children to return to her care at present. A lot will also depend on what the concerns are that led to her children being removed from her care and how long it is likely to take for her to address the concerns.

A care case should take 6 months to complete from the date the application was made. It may be that your friend need to what is asked of her during this period to deal whatever the issues are regarding her parenting. An interim care order usually lasts for the duration of the care proceedings. This is how our A-Z of terms describe interim care order as follows:

An interim care order (ICO) is a temporary order made by the court which says that the child should be looked after in the care system for a temporary period. It means that the court has good reasonsto believe a child has been seriously harmed or is likely to be seriously harmed, and that an Interim Care Order is the best thing for the child until there is a final hearing. It is usually made at the beginning of care proceedings to give Children’s Services temporary powers and it usually lasts until the case is finally decided. It can be ended before that if the court decides that it is no longer justified.

You or your friend may also find it helpful to read our advice sheet Care (and related) proceedings

Under this order, Children’s Services share parental responsibility for the child with the parents. This means that they must find out parents wishes about any decision concerning their child, but Children's Services always have the final say and can make plans for the child even if the parents don’t agree with them.

Once a final care order is made in favour of the local authority this will last until the children are 18 years old unless it is discharged before then. It is possible to apply to the court to discharge a care order six months or so after it has been made but only if there has been a significant change in respect of the concerns that led to the order being made in the first place. Any application to discharge a care order will involve children’s services, the children’s guardian and other parties who were involved in the original case (unless the court says otherwise).
This is as much advice as I can give on the limited information you have provided in your post.

I hope this is helpful but if you wish to speak to an adviser, please telephone our advice line on 0808 801 0366. The advice line is open from 9.30am to 3pm Monday to Friday.

Best wishes

Suzie