Pre-Proceedings

FDAC teams in London and East Sussex work with families in the formal pre-proceedings period.

This report considers the role of the FDAC specialist team in pre-proceedings work. It describes the findings from a review of cases where the London FDAC specialist team worked with parents in pre-proceedings and from interviews with FDAC team members, local authority staff and private practice legal practitioners. The review was carried out by the FDAC National Unit in the summer of 2017. You are welcome to use it as a basis for developing your own service. There is a draft protocol at the end of the report and we have included a draft referral process.

Post-Proceedings

Different FDAC teams offer different levels of support after final hearings. Many FDAC practitioners and judges are keen to have a better funded and more formalised post-proceedings offer to FDAC families. It is recognised to be a very important time for all members of the family, regardless of the outcome of proceedings.

It is recommended that anyone interested in learning more about the offer of aftercare support from their local FDAC, contacts the team directly. Despite local variations, teams will share the value of tailoring the package of support to the bespoke needs of the family.

Gloucestershire’s FDAC Supervision Care Order Pathway is an example of aftercare Support within the FDAC Community. This pathway was reviewed by Researchers from King’s College London under Supporting Families, Investing in Practice, and can be accessed through the link below.

Early FDAC / Pre-Birth Service

Early FDAC was a small pilot of an assessment and treatment service for pregnant women and where appropriate their partners, who have had one or more children previously removed from their care through court proceedings. The pilot took place in London FDAC, Coventry FDAC and Kent and Medway FDAC and practitioners taking part were very positive about the model.