Positive SGO assessment and recommendations.

[JYHJ4]

I have currently been caring for my neice for the past 3months due to a interim care order been put in place for both parents. I have passed my assessment and getting a recommendation for little one to stay in my care. We are coming close to the court hearing to see if the judge grants the SGO. My question is what are my chances of this been granted? Do I get my hopes up or not? Both parents have not prioritised best interests of the child in and out of their care. I'm worrying so much that she won't remain with me. I understand the recommendation is not a final decision but how often do the judges agree with the recommendation? Thanks.

[Robin D]

Hi JYHJ4 and welcome here.

I don't know any statistics but would be very surprised if the court rejected a full assessment unless the court is then made aware of something that should have been looked at in the assessment process but was missed.

The timescales you mention seem very quick. Are you sure they are doing the full SGO assessment rather than the initial assessment? I am somewhat out of touch but 3 months seems very ambitious. I have been emotionally supporting a mother through the reverse process where her children are now being looked after by paternal grandparents. The SGO itself was finally granted about 30 months from the child being removed and just over two years from being placed with the grandparents. That followed the initial assessment that took about 3 months, and then the full assessment that took the rest of the time. I accept there were some delays introduced because of the Covid effect on the courts, but I am not aware of any complexities that needed exploring.

Suzie the FRG advisor who deals with queries on this forum will reply and hopefully can give a more up-to-date view on the possible timescales. In the meantime, you may find the advice sheet at https://frg.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2 ... edings.pdf a helpful read.

I wish you luck. It's a brave thing you are undertaking.

[JYHJ4]

Yes full SGO assessment. They have recently changed the process where they have to carry out the full assessment within 12weeks they notified me at the beginning of the the assessment and said it would be very intrusive and a lot of visits within this time scale to get it completed in time. SGO assessment and parent assessments are now completed at the same time to reduce the timescale.
Thank you for wishing me luck I hope to get granted the SGO and keeping everything crossed.

[Suzie, FRG Adviser]

I have currently been caring for my neice for the past 3months due to a interim care order been put in place for both parents. I have passed my assessment and getting a recommendation for little one to stay in my care. We are coming close to the court hearing to see if the judge grants the SGO. My question is what are my chances of this been granted? Do I get my hopes up or not? Both parents have not prioritised best interests of the child in and out of their care. I'm worrying so much that she won't remain with me. I understand the recommendation is not a final decision but how often do the judges agree with the recommendation? Thanks.

Dear JYHJ4

Thank you for your further post. It is great news that you have had a positive assessment.

You are now worried about whether the decision will be made by your niece to remain in your care. Just to clarify the interim care order (ICO) is in place for your niece and it means that children’s services share parental responsibility with the parents.

Whilst it is not possible to give a definitive response to your question about whether the judge will grant a special guardianship order (SGO) in your favour, the recommendation is that your niece should remain in your care. The final decision is for the judge to make and I think it unlikely he will go against the recommendation. In addition, if the children’s guardian also support her remaining in your care the judge would need to give his reasons for not following the recommendation.

Here is the welfare checklist which the judge must consider before deciding what is best for children.

Both children’s services and the children’s guardian might consider an appeal if they disagree strongly with the judge.

Also, the parents have, I suppose, had negative parenting assessments so she would not return to them.

You have had a supportive and useful response from Robin D. I think you can be quietly confident she is likely to remain in your care despite the fact we cannot prejudge the outcome.

I hope this is helpful and that you will have the outcome you want at the final hearing.

Best wishes

Suzie