DECISION MAKING BY SOCIAL WORKERS

January 22nd, 2025 by James Goudie KC

On the obligations of local authorities to children who may be “ children in need “, for the purposes of Section 17 (10 ) of the Children Act 1989, the Court of Appeal, in R ( TW ) v ESSEX COUNTY COUNCIL ( 2025 ) EWCA Civ 4, held that the authority did not owe ongoing obligations to a young person as a “ former relevant child “. Even though the authority had helped the claimant, under Section 20, to obtain accommodation, through a third party provider, the authority was not to be regarded as (1) having treated him as a child in need, or (2) having provided him with accommodation. The authority had acted rationally in deciding, on the basis of detailed documentation, that he was not a child in need.

Comments are closed.