Pre-Proceedings

FDAC teams in London, Kent 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.

This handbook was prepared for local authorities, their FDAC teams and the court service as a guide to post-proceedings support as part of FDAC. You are welcome to use it as a basis for developing your own service.

Gloucestershire FDAC has an established Supervision Order Care Pathway. An outline of the service is available here. This pathway is being investigated by researchers from King’s College London under Supporting Families, Investing in Practice.

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.

Anxiety Management Group

The anxiety group is once a week for six weeks, each session lasts 60 minutes. The group provides education and support in a group setting to parents who are engaging with FDAC. The group includes CBT and Mindfulness techniques to help participants learn to manage their anxiety and gain some awareness about what causes it and how to alleviate it.

The FDAC anxiety management group manual and resources manual have been devised and collated by the London FDAC Team and the sessions have been shaped by feedback from parents who have participated in the London FDAC anxiety management group over the past eight years. If you would like the manual and associated resources, contact CJI on info@justiceinnovation.org.