Thursday, 10th May 2012
11.00am – 3.30pm Including Networking Lunch
Taking place in Westminster, London
£225 per place or £175 for two or more places
The Context:
The government has now published its formal response to the Family Justice review. In accepting the vast majority of the review’s recommendations, the government acknowledges the urgency of the need to reform the family justice system. Key principles include: ensuring that the welfare of the child remains paramount; that children must be given the opportunity to have their voices heard; and that problems should, wherever possible, be resolved out of court.
The Issues:
Delegates at this Policy and Practice Westminster Briefing will have the opportunity to examine the government’s response and consider the implications for the family justice system. Participants will engage with the panel which will look at issues including:
- The establishment of a Family Justice Board – national and local developments
- Creating a more coherent system, reducing delays and delivering better outcomes
- Imposing time limits on care proceedings
- Introducing new legislation to ensure a focus on the child’s welfare
- Listening to the ‘voice of the child’
- Reducing the excessive use of expert reports
- Raising the standards of social care practice – improving the assessment process
- Capturing and disseminating best practice: closer collaboration between courts and local authorities
- Building the skills of all professionals involved in family justice
- The implications for local authority social workers and legal staff
- The implications of shared parenting
- Establishing an improved dispute resolution process
Objectives and Outcomes:
The morning policy session will allow participants to engage with the panel to consider the government’s approach to family justice and the implications for them and their setting. The afternoon policy into practice session will be highly interactive with examples of successful family justice strategies. For further details please see the agenda.
Who Should Attend:
Delegates will be drawn from across the children and young people’s sector including: Local Authority officers and members, local authority lawyers, lawyers representing children and parents in care proceedings, judges and magistrates from the family courts, children’s guardians and other Cafcass personnel, police, Ofsted, social workers and managers, independent reviewing officers, children’s charities, parent’s pressure groups and health practitioners and those working for central government departments & bodies, unions, academia and the independent and voluntary sectors.
Morning refreshments will be served upon arrival with a networking lunch to follow. Any special needs or dietary requirements should be notified to us upon booking.
Background Quote
“I welcome the Government Response to the Family Justice Review. The Review presented the Government with a bold and challenging agenda for change. I am pleased the Government have accepted the overwhelming majority of our recommendations. The result should be to reduce the long delays that are so damaging to children and families and to help separating couples sort out their issues for themselves to the benefit of their children.”
David Norgrove, Chair, Family Justice Review
“The reform of family justice and child protection is a critical priority for Government. Our reforms are ambitious and system-wide and particularly tackle the crucial problem of delay. More use of mediation, more effective court processes and more efficient provision of advice will help to create a family justice system which can better resolve these difficult emotional problems in the best interests of children and families.”
Rt Hon Ken Clarke MP, Justice Secretary
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