All the women Pause works with have experience of the children’s social care system. Our influencing work in this area aims to improve the system, so that it better meets the needs of birth mothers – before, during and after care proceedings – so that no family experiences the removal of a child more than once.
Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill
Despite the difference post-removal support is proven make, it is not available to parents at risk of repeat removals in more than half (56%) of local areas. The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill provides the opportunity to prevent further child removals by ensuring parents can access the post-removal support they need.
Repeat removals
Pause’s Never More Than Once report sets out how the government can better support birth families, so that the removal of a child into the care system never happens more than once. Providing birth parents with the right support could thereby reducing the number of children entering care, as well as avoiding trauma for families and saving money to the public purse.
Expert witness assessments in care proceedings
Our report, Set Up to Fail, highlights how the disconnect between the recommendations in expert witness reports and the availability of local mental health services, is setting women up to fail.
