Cafcass has introduced some revised arrangements for managing unsustainable caseloads.

The process has been implemented in the Cafcass areas covering Birmingham, the Black Country, Shropshire, Worcestershire, Staffordshire and Herefordshire family courts due to unsustainable pressures on the family justice system in the area.

Cafcass Chief Executive, Jacky Tiotto said: “I have said publicly before that any decision which confirms and formalises delay for children and their families in respect of an outcome to their proceedings is among the most difficult to make. It means that they live longer with the impact of family conflict and the uncertainty about the future arrangements for them.”

“However, our Family Court Advisers need time to develop strong relationships with children and families so they can understand their experiences and hopes for the future. It is critical that they have time to think and to make recommendations to court that can be clearly explained to the children and families with whom they are working. This work cannot be undertaken effectively if caseloads are unmanageable and there is no doubt that the quality of decision-making and amount of contact with children is reduced if they have too many cases,” she added.

Nationally, Cafcass is working with around 10,500 more children - 6,500 more cases - than it was at the beginning of the pandemic because of the reduced capacity of the courts to hear cases during this period and the associated impact on the caseloads of Family Court Advisers. Unchecked, these pressures will impact on the quality of practice and decision-making about children’s futures.

The protocol sets out the process for assessing which cases will be affected, how the permission of the family court will be sought to manage the work, and the arrangements for families and children to be made aware of and informed about the progress of their application.

The decision to implement the process follows robust internal scrutiny of the pressures and close liaison with the judiciary locally and nationally. The arrangements agreed are consistent with a national approach set out in the Cafcass Prioritisation Protocol, which has been developed to enable Cafcass to limit the number of cases allocated to Family Court Advisers and to maintain safe caseloads in a way which fully upholds the authority of the court.

The new process will work as follows:

• The courts and Cafcass will triage cases in private law proceedings on the basis of risk and capacity, as identified in the initial assessment that Cafcass files to the court.
• Those families likely to need further Cafcass involvement will be divided into those which need to be allocated for an FCA to start work immediately, and those which are less urgent and will be allocated to an experienced Practice Supervisor for oversight until it can be allocated safely.
• In each case, a filing time which takes account of the needs of the family and the available Cafcass capacity will be agreed and communicated to parents (or other parties) by the courts.
• Cafcass will follow up with a letter to the parents and the child to explain what this means for them and outline who is looking after their case while they wait.

All public law work will continue to be allocated in the normal way and within established timescales.

Cafcass aims that the measures will enable the organisation to restore the usual service times and prevent the need to prioritise in other areas, although this will require continued intensive joint working with local and national partners. This is especially important given that the pandemic has accelerated pre-Covid pressures which have led to backlogs and extended length of proceedings for children and families because of the reduced ability of the courts to conclude cases.

Cafcass stated that the issue is “a system problem” and the organisation will continue to work with partners to restore a normal allocation process in these areas and to limit the number of other areas where the protocol may need to be implemented.

Cafcass is already in discussion with a number of local courts about the potential risks to their capacity to provide a service within normal timescales and the same processes are likely to be activated in other areas in the weeks ahead.

Jacky Tiotto added: “With demand in private law proceedings as high as it is at a time when the work is taking so much longer, there is a worrying inevitability about the saturation of the system. It is widely accepted that this pressure is going to continue for some months. We are doing everything within our authority and available resources to balance the demand for our service with the need to ensure safe caseloads and, thereby, the welfare of the children and families we serve. Implementing a process to prioritise the children who are in need of the most help most quickly, is an interim solution that will enable us to maintain this balance. I am sorry that we have not been able to identify a different solution with better outcomes for children and families. Cafcass, together with our partners, will take responsibility for the change that has to be found for the current situation.”