Social services and domestic violence

[Suzie, FRG Adviser]

Dear Looloo33

Thank you for your post and welcome to the forum. My name is Suzie, I am an online adviser and will be replying to you today. I am sorry to hear of your situation, you have been physically assaulted by your ex partner whilst holding your child, this must have been a very frightening situation for you.

Following the assault, you called the police, who arrested your ex-partner. You and your baby went to hospital to get checked over, on discharge you fled to a Refuge two hours away from your home and children’s services are now involved.

Concern that a child is experiencing or witnessing domestic abuse is a very common reason why children’s services become involved with families. Research shows that children can suffer long-term. And the legal definition of significant harm specifically includes a child hearing or seeing someone else being harmed.

I will assume children’s services are completing a Section 47 child protection enquiry. Please do clink on the link HERE
for further information and advice regarding the process of a child protection enquiry and how children’s services should be working with you.

I have further added HERE information and guidance about how to work well with the allocated social worker and what you may wish to consider if things are not going so well.

You and your baby are living in a Refuge, therefore, I will assume you have domestic abuse support, however, in addition to this, you may find the link HERE
helpful. It is to a domestic abuse charity who support people in your type of situation.

You are concerned that you will be thought less protective if you do not press criminal charges against your ex-partner and are seeking advice in this respect. You called the police and fled your home to protect your child and yourself. This is being a protective parent and prioritising you and your child’s safety above everything else. I can only imagine how difficult this must have been for you.

There are many reasons you may no longer want to go to court, however, if you do, there are special measures the court can take to make I easier for you.

It is not uncommon for people to want to withdraw their complaint. The Crown Prosecution Services can continue their investigation and prosecution in some circumstances. I think it would be a good idea to discuss your views with the allocated police officer in charge of the investigation for further support and guidance and also to speak to your domestic abuse support worker.

In respect of children’s services and your concerns about the possible impact of not following through with the criminal court proceedings, it is their role to ensure your child is safe and well looked after. This is not dependant on whether you decided to take part in the criminal investigation of your ex partner. I would suggest you work closely with children’s services to demonstrate you are a safe and responsible parent and are able to take care of your child.

I hope you find this information helpful. If you would like to talk to an adviser at Family Rights Group about your situation, please call the freephone advice line on 0808 801 0366, Mon to Fri, 9.30 am to 3.00 pm. If you prefer, you can post back, use our advice enquiry form or webchat. Please refer to our website for further information.

Best wishes, Suzie