Lord Freud, Minister for Welfare Reform in the Department for Work & Pensions, and Edward Timpson, Children and Families Minister in the Department for Education, have written a joint letter to local authorities about the housing benefit under-occupancy rules and their impact on foster carers.
Full story: Family Law Week
Councils rise to minister's challenge on care leaver support
Nearly two thirds of local authorities are providing care leavers with grants of at least £2,000 to help them set up home after children’s minister Edward Timpson called on them to boost levels of support.
Full story: Children & Young People Now
Full story: Children & Young People Now
Label:
News
Rotherham council apologises over way it handled removal of children from Ukip foster parents
A council has apologised over the way it handled a decision to remove three Eastern European children from foster parents who were members of Ukip.
Full story: The Independent
Full story: The Independent
Label:
News
Gay marriage: Final reading in Commons
The government's same-gender marriage bill is to receive a third and final Commons reading after surviving resistance from Tory opponents on Monday night.
Full story: BBC News
Full story: BBC News
Label:
News
Maria Stubbings murder: IPCC report prompts inquiry call
The family of a woman murdered by her ex-partner are calling for a public inquiry into how complaints of domestic violence are handled.
Full story: BBC News
Full story: BBC News
Label:
News
Huge rise in fixed fees for family and probate
There has been a dramatic rise in the number of solicitors offering fixed fees for probate and family work, a report for the legal services consumer panel has found.
Full story: Solicitors Journal
Full story: Solicitors Journal
Label:
News
Top family judge urges earlier involvement of local authority lawyers
Local authority lawyers need to get involved earlier – advising and assisting their social work clients – than is often the case, the President of the Family Division has argued.
Full story: Local Government Lawyer
Full story: Local Government Lawyer
Label:
News
A fairer child maintenance system for a country where paying for your children is 'now the norm'
New official statistics on the proportion of separated parents who are paying for their children through the Child Support Agency.
Full story: GOV.UK
Full story: GOV.UK
Label:
News
Revised Public Law Outline comes into effect on 1 July 2013
In the second edition of Sir James Munby's 'View from the President's Chambers', he has confirmed that an interim version of the revised Public Law Outline will be published at the end of May 2013 and will come into effect on 1 July 2013.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Label:
News
Gay marriage bill returns to Commons
Plans to legalise same-gender marriage in England and Wales return to the Commons later, amid continuing opposition from some Conservative activists and MPs.
Full story: BBC News
Full story: BBC News
Label:
News
Elena Ambrosiadou wins legal battle with ex-husband Martin Coward over software
High Court judge says hedge fund tycoons gave ‘tainted’ evidence in fight for spoils of marriage.
Full story: The Independent
Full story: The Independent
Label:
News
Divorcee keeps overpayment of pension made as part of divorce settlement
The Pensions Ombudsman has determined that a divorcee need not repay to Scottish Widows an overpayment secured in her divorce settlement as a result of an incorrect transfer value provided by the pension scheme administrator.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Label:
News
First ever chief social worker for children and fast-track training to lead social work reform
Education Secretary Michael Gove today announced the appointment of a children's chief social worker and a new fast-track training programme for top graduates.
Full story: GOV.UK
Full story: GOV.UK
Label:
News
Gay marriage: Review of civil partnerships possible but not until 2019
Ministers have said they are prepared to review whether civil partnerships should be extended to heterosexual couples but not until 2019.
Full story: BBC News
Full story: BBC News
Label:
News
Funding for foster care recruitment boost unveiled
The government has today unveiled a new package of support to help local authorities attract and retain more foster carers from a wider range of backgrounds.
Full story: GOV.UK
Full story: GOV.UK
Label:
News
Stopping poor quality and time-wasting expert evidence in family courts
New national standards to raise the quality of experts used in family courts were announced by the Government today.
Full story: GOV.UK
Full story: GOV.UK
Label:
News
DWP’s child maintenance data is ‘misleading’
Gingerbread has today criticised the government’s reports of its own success in collecting child maintenance as ‘misleading’, after the DWP launched a consultation on new reporting standards.
Full story: Gingerbread
Full story: Gingerbread
Label:
News
Ministers seek to cut £50m legal aid bill for expert witnesses in family courts
Ministry of justice says it wants to introduce new standards to ensure only highest calibre of evidence is permitted.
Full story: The Guardian
Full story: The Guardian
Label:
News
Social work evidence to carry greater weight with Court of Protection
Court expected to revise guidance to make it clear it will accept mental capacity assessments from social workers, and not just from doctors, psychologists or therapists.
Full story: Community Care
Full story: Community Care
Label:
News
Councils to be allowed to delegate looked-after children work
The Department for Education proposes changes to the law to allow local authorities to delegate work for looked-after children to external organisations.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Label:
News
Child maintenance now being paid in four out of five cases
For the latest quarter, maintenance had been collected or arranged by the CSA via the statutory maintenance service on behalf of 921,000 children.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Label:
News
College sounds warning on fostering-for-adoption plans
Government plans to speed up the adoption process could undermine efforts to place looked-after children with family members and potentially harm child welfare, The College of Social Work has said.
Full story: Children & Young People Now
Full story: Children & Young People Now
Label:
News
Civil partnerships for heterosexual couples a bad idea, says Maria Miller
Equalities minister tells parliamentary committee such a move should not be included in same sex marriage legislation.
Full story: The Guardian
Full story: The Guardian
Label:
News
How foster care separates siblings
More than half of children are split up from their brothers and sisters as demand for carers rises.
Full story: The Independent
Full story: The Independent
Label:
News
Pre-proceedings process does not shorten care proceedings, research shows
A major new research report on the pre-proceedings process shows how local authorities, lawyers and the courts have operated this part of the 2008 PLO reforms.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Label:
News
The Adoption Agencies (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2013
These Regulations amend the Adoption Agencies Regulations 2005 which make provision relating to the exercise by adoption agencies (local authorities and registered adoption societies) of their functions in relation to adoption under the Adoption and Children Act 2002.
Statutory Instrument
Statutory Instrument
Label:
Statutory Instruments
Japan announces abduction pilot scheme
Reunite reports that Japan has recently announced a pilot scheme to provide legal advice to those involved in parental child abduction cases who reside outside of Japan.
Full story: Family Law Week
Full story: Family Law Week
Label:
News
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