• the parent, guardian or special guardian of a child;
• any person who has parental responsibility;
• anyone who holds a residence order in respect of the child;
• any party to a marriage or civil partnership where the child is a child of the family;
• anyone with whom the child has lived for at least three years;
• anyone who has obtained the consent of:

A directions letter will then be sent to the parties with a date of the First Hearing Dispute Resolution Appointment, and a notice that Cafcass will be in contact to conduct their Safeguarding Call.

Resources:

At least three days before the first court hearing Cafcass will provide the court with a short report on the outcomes of the safeguarding checks and any child welfare issues raised by each of the parties. This is known as a safeguarding letter.

A Position Statement is a written statement that outlines the person's position, views, and preferences regarding specific issues related to the family matter being addressed in court. The purpose of a Family Court Position Statement is to provide the court with a clear understanding of the person's stance on the disputed matters. Position statement should be no more than 3 sides of A4 paper and should be restricted to a persons position and not contain arguments around litigation or evidence (See source FHDRA and Evidence ) .

The purpose of the FHDRA is for the court to:

• obtain initial information about the case;
• consider welfare and harm issues;
• determine whether a Fact-Finding on allegation of domestic abuse is needed by applying Practice Directions 12;
• consider whether any interim orders can be made by consent;
• to determine whether Cafcass needs to prepare a Section 7 report.

Resources:

It is convention that both parties will submit and serve a Position Statement prior to the DRA outlining their position in response to the Cafcass Report.

At the DRA, the Cafcass Family Court Advisor will speak to both parties separately. The aim is to establish whether there is either agreement with the recommendations, whether there are part agreements (narrowing down the issues), or whether the parties are still at disagreement with little resolution.

At the Dispute Resolution Appointment the Cafcass Officer will usually then update the court as to any progress.

If there is agreement, the court may make a Final Order based on the consent of both parties.

Where there is no agreement, the court will set a date for a Final Hearing.

The court will determine whether the Cafcass Family Court Advisor will be required to attend the Final Hearing to give evidence on their Section 7 Report and to be cross examined.

At the Final Hearing both parties can be cross examined and both parties can cross examine Cafcass and any other witnesses.

Where there are allegations of domestic abuse, both parties may qualify for a Qualified Legal Representative (QLR) to conduct cross examinations.

After the cross examinations, both parties will be able to provide final submissions to the court. The court will then make a Final Judgement.

The ‘live with’ element of a Child Arrangements Order remains legally binding until the child reaches the age of 18, however the Court are very reluctant to enforce such orders beyond the age of 16 unless there are exceptional circumstances.

• The court can only make orders based on the factors of the Child Welfare Checklist
• All decisions are made on balance of probability
• The Welfare of the child is paramount.
• Parental Responsibility does not provide the right for a parent to have a relationship with their child, it is the right of the child to have a relationship with their parents, if safe to do so.
• It is an irrebuttable truth that you don't need paid lawyers in the family court.
• 1(1) of the Children Act 1989 is the overarching principle in determining the issues which divide the parties where the welfare of the children is the court's paramount consideration.
• 1(2) (a) of the Children Act 1989 provides for a legal presumption that the involvement of each parent in the life of the child will further the child's welfare.
• 1(3) of the Children Act 1989 the court must have regard to all the circumstances of the case, taking into account the relevant parts of the Child Welfare Checklist.
• The wishes and feelings of the Child. In Re L. Rev, the court of appeal had expert opinion evidence in relation to the impact of domestic abuse upon children. The psychiatric expert evidence characterised the general assessment of children according to their age. A child up to 6 years of age is likely to align their expressed wishes and feelings with those of their primary carer. A child over 12 years of age is generally becoming more informed and more self-determined and confident in expressing their own wishes and feelings. Children between 6 and 12 are more difficult to analyse and access their true wishes and feelings. In this range it may be difficult for the court to determine what weight should be given to the wishes and feelings of the children.

• Costs in Child Cases
• Lying in the Family Court
• Parental Alienation and Psychological Assessments
• S hared Care and Joint Lives with Orders
• Parental Responsibility Sections 3 and 4 of the Children Act 1989
• Re H-N (children)(domestic abuse: finding of fact hearings) 2021 EWCA Civ 448
• Costs in Children Cases : Taken from 'In the matter of S (A Child) before Lady Hale, Deputy President JUDGMENT 25 March 2015.
• Internal Relocation within UK
• Permission to Relocate
• The Label of 'Parental Alienation'
• The Instruction of Experts where there are allegations of Parental Alienation
• S (A Child [2023] EWCA Civ 706 : Successful appeal against refusal to join father without PR as party to care proceedings.
• Parental Responsibility following negative paternity test results 3 cases of interest:

• C100: Child Arrangements Application
• C1a: Domestic Abuse and Risk of Harm
• C1: Applying for Certain Orders CA Act 1989
• C2: Applicationin Existing Proceedings
• C3: Authorising search and delivery of child
• C4: Seeking information of child's location
• C7: Response to application
• C8: Keeping Contact details confidential
• C63: Declaration of parentage