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Legal content

Author: Community Care Inform

Updated Date: 6 July 2023

Publication Date: 5 January 2017

Introduction

On this page you will find our most popular legal content including legislation and legislative guidance, a selection of the most recent and often used case law, and practice guidance on court skills. This is just a small sample of the content on the site. If you cannot find what you are looking for please use the search bar or search by topic on our knowledge and practice hub directory.

Note: If you’re based in Wales, you’ll find further resources on Welsh law here.

Key legislation

Children Act 1989

Social Services and Wellbeing (Wales) Act 2014

Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights

Children and Families Act 2014

Children Act 2004

The Care Planning, Placement and Case Review (England) Regulations 2010 (as amended)

The Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 (as amended)

Articles 2 and 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights

Case law

Below is a selection of case summaries. Click here to see all our case law

Deprivation of liberty, disabled children and Cheshire West: Re SM [2024] EWHC 493 (Fam)

Disabled children, short breaks and section 20: R (TS) v Hackney [2023] EWHC 3063 (Admin)

Interim care orders – are they ‘necessary and proportionate’?: Re J & Ors [2023] EWCA Civ 1266

Child protection and the common law duty of care: HXA v Surrey County Council & Anor [2023] UKSC 52

Deprivation of liberty to protect a child from criminal exploitation: EBY (A Child) [2023] EWHC 2494 (Fam)

Infant vaccination, religious objection and care orders: Re WSP (A Child) [2023] EWHC 2622 (Fam)

Termination of an 11-year-old’s pregnancy, Gillick competence and child protection: A Health Board v AZ [2023] EWHC 2517

Care orders v supervision orders when a child is placed at home: JW [2023] EWCA Civ 944

Long term use of section 20 and the care order threshold: Re S (A Child) & W (A Child) [2023] EWCA Civ 1

Notifying the birth father of adoption proceedings: M [2023] EWFC 17

Parental alienation and care proceedings: Warwickshire County Council v The Mother & Ors [2022] EWHC 2146 (Fam)

Psychological assessments in care proceedings: E (A Child) (Care and Placement Orders) [2023] EWCA Civ 721

Fabricated or induced illness and emergency protection orders: E and H [2023] EWFC 69

Transgender surgery abroad and the inherent jurisdiction: S [2023] EWHC 347 (Fam)

Coercive control, contact and parental responsibility: F v M (Rev1) [2023] EWFC 5

Restricting access to mobile phone and social media – deprivation of liberty?: Manchester City Council v P (Rev1) [2023] EWHC 133 (Fam)

Section 91(14) ‘barring orders’: A Local Authority v F & Ors [2022] EWFC 127

Negligence, human rights and whether a child has a ‘right’ to a care order: AB v Worcestershire County Council & Anor [2022] EWHC 115 (QB)

Adoption placements and medical requirements: Somerset County Council v NHS Somerset Clinical Commissioning Group & Ors [2022] EWFC 31

Dol of 16/17 year olds and court applications: KL (A Minor: deprivation of liberty) [2022] EWCOP 24

Bell v Tavistock and Portman [2021] (puberty blockers and Gillick competence)

Residential placements and the right to manifest one’s religion: A and B (Minors: placement, faith) [2021] EWHC 455 (Admin)

Assessing a child’s needs for Mental Health Act aftercare: R (AK) v London Borough of Islington [2021]

A Local Authority v GP [2020] (capacity to accept or refuse care, support and education)

Re Z (A Child [2020] (deprivation of liberty and transport)

Deprivation of liberty and parental consent: Re D (A Child) [2019] UKSC 42

Re B (a child) [2013] (“nothing else will do”)

Re B-S (adoption) [2013]

Re X (2006) Emergency protection orders

Support for parents with learning disabilities: Re D (A child) No. 3

Guides to the law on key and recent topics

Care orders and supervision orders: guide to the law

Child sexual exploitation: a guide to the case law

Quick guide to the Supported Accommodation (England) Regulations 2023

Deprivation of liberty of children and young people under the inherent jurisdiction

The leaving care legal framework in England and Wales

Quick guide to marriage minimum age law

Unregulated accommodation and under 16s: quick guide to the 2021 amended regulations

Accommodating homeless young people following the Southwark judgment

Section 20 (England) Section 76 (Wales): Putting the guidance from case law into practice

Parental responsibility

Private family proceedings

Guide to the balance sheet approach and Re B-S compliant evidence

Deprivation of liberty

Fostering (England)

Fostering (Wales)

Neglect: the legal framework and decision-making

Key adoption legislation

Assessments and service provision decisions for disabled children: guide to the law (England)

Assessing needs and eligibility: the law for disabled children (Wales)

See guides to more aspects of the law on working with disabled children in England and Wales on our disabled children knowledge and practice hub

Court skills

Multimedia learning

Webinar: Public Law Outline and pre-proceedings

Family court and proceedings glossary: legal terminology explained

Appearing in court: survival guide

Writing court reports

Example completed social work evidence template (SWET)

Writing up direct work for case records and court reports

A judge’s tips for children’s social workers giving evidence

A barrister’s tips for giving evidence in the family court

Learn as a group: improving your balance sheet evidence

Multimedia learning

Webinar: Gathering and presenting evidence of neglect in court

Dealing with a high profile trial

Multimedia learning

Video: How to give evidence at a coroner’s court inquest

Add item to CPD Log (SWE)

Title *
Legal content

Date *
21-12-2024 (dd-mm-yyyy)

Learning or development activity, resource or URL
https://www.ccinform.co.uk/knowledge-hubs/legal-knowledge-and-practice-hub/

Learning

Use the boxes below to record what you have learned from this activity. The form below replicates that used by Social Work England in your online account, so that when you need to renew your registration each year, you can easily transfer examples of CPD. Everything you write will be stored in your My CPD log on CC Inform. You can return to each piece of CPD and edit or add to it at any time - for example, if you reflect on it with a peer. You can export all the information as a Word file and copy it into Social Work England's form for the pieces you choose to submit during renewal, and print it off for other uses - for example, in supervision or peer reflection.

1. Describe what you have learnt from doing this CPD activity. (Social Work England recommend that you write 250-500 words, and they say that you may want to refer to the CPD standard 4.1-4.8 - see below.)

Word count: 0

2. Reflect on and describe the positive impact the CPD has had (or will have) on your practice and the people you work with.

This could be people with lived experience of social work, colleagues, or students. If you are not currently working, or not in direct practice, you could think about how your CPD activity might benefit people you come into contact with or the profession as a whole. (Social Work England recommend you write about 250 to 500 words).

Word count: 0

3. Describe what you have learnt from discussing this CPD activity with a peer

This is an optional question. By answering it for at least one of your pieces of CPD, you will meet Social Work England's requirements to record one piece of CPD with a peer reflection during the registration year. You are expected to write at least 250 words.

Social Work England say: "Peer reflection means that you have discussed the content of your CPD activity with a peer, your manager or another professional.

This discussion can be informal or formal, and can take place in one to one or group settings. The role of the peer is not to approve your learning but to support and help you to think about how you can improve your practice. When discussing your CPD with a peer, you should talk about what you have learnt from doing the CPD and the positive impact the CPD activity has had (or will have) on your role, practice and the people you work with".

Read more guidance from the regulator about peer reflection here

Word count: 0

4. Which parts of the CPD standard have you met by doing this activity? By going through the recording process, you will automatically meet standards 4.6 and 4.7. You can use the box below to note the other standards you have met with this piece.

4.1 Incorporate feedback from a range of sources, including from people with lived experience of my social work practice.
4.2 Use supervision and feedback to critically reflect on, and identify my learning needs, including how I use research and evidence to inform my practice.
4.3 Keep my practice up to date and record how I use research, theories and frameworks to inform my practice and my professional judgement.
4.4 Demonstrate good subject knowledge on key aspects of social work practice and develop knowledge of current issues in society and social policies impacting on social work.
4.5 Contribute to an open and creative learning culture in the workplace to discuss, reflect on and share best practice.
4.6 Reflect on my learning activities and evidence what impact continuing professional development has on the quality of my practice.
4.7 Record my learning and reflection on a regular basis and in accordance with Social Work England's guidance on continuing professional development.
4.8 Reflect on my own values and challenge the impact they have on my practice.

For more information, see Social Work England’s guidance on CPD.

Add item to CPD Log (SCW)

Title * Legal content

Date * 21-12-2024 (dd-mm-yyyy)

URL https://www.ccinform.co.uk/knowledge-hubs/legal-knowledge-and-practice-hub/

Learning Use the boxes below to record what you have learned from this activity. Everything you write will be stored in your Inform account and you can export all the information as a Word file or print it off. When you have to renew your social work registration with Social Care Wales, you can include this as evidence of continuing professional development.

1. What have you learned from this activity?

2. How has it contributed to your practice?

3. How much time have you spent on this activity?

4. Next steps (any additional learning you need in this area)?

For more details, visit Social Care Wales

Citation

Full Harvard reference for this document:

() Legal content. Knowledge Hubs.
Community Care Inform
[online]
https://www.ccinform.co.uk/knowledge-hubs/legal-knowledge-and-practice-hub/
[accessed: 21 December 2024]

If you are directly quoting the author's own words from this document you must acknowledge that they are not your own words by putting them within quotes marks, reference the source in the text and then provide the full reference at the end of the document. For example:

In the text: Brackenbridge argues that "[t]he interpersonal dynamics of sexual abuse in sport are similar to those in other settings but exacerbated by some key situational differences" (Brackenbridge, 2008).

Full reference to insert at the bottom of the document: Brackenbridge, C. (2008) Child Protection in Sport. Guide. Community Care Inform Children [online]. Available at: https://www.ccinform.co.uk/articles/2008/02/22/1973/Child+protection+in+sport.html [accessed: INSERT DATE HERE (eg 25 November 2015)]