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[GPEH]

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[PerfectlySafeDad]

Stockpile every scrap of positive evidence you have that you are now in control and a responsible, healthy parent in a stable situation: Doctor's reference as to how your mental health has been for a long time and your reliability in taking medication and using other support available; similar mental health community nurse report (if have one); the excellent state of your flat with photos to prove it (it's probably better than many social worker's places); work well with whatever midwife you have, having responsible intelligent conversations about childcare with her and your knowledge of how to bring up a child well; keep a log of every person involved with dates and the reasons given, getting every signed and witnessed if possible. Avoid giving any impression whatsoever about anything negative or weak in your situation from this point forth, you can guess what those things would be.
They will not forgive or forget your past, mental illness is high on their list of prejudices, and I'm afraid they will not make things easy for you, they're positioning themselves already in their cruel and chaotic way to build a case against you. Give them nothing further to work on. You're stable, you're normal and you're safe to bring up a child, do everything you can to get that message across. The key is to have enough things in your favour to outweigh any negatives, so on the 'balance of probabilities' you are no risk to your child, and any action by them would put them at risk of human rights violations and they have to know it.
This is the worst case scenario, but let's hope they back off much more easily than this as soon as they receive good feedback from your midwife and any other professionals involved.

[Suzie, FRG Adviser]

Dear GPEH,

Welcome to the Parents forum and I am sorry for the delay in responding to your post. Congratulations on your pregnancy.

I am so sorry to hear that your 2 older children were removed in an emergency situation 7 years ago and subsequently adopted. You say assessments showed that you and your then partner had been suffering from untreated mental health problems which impacted on daily life to the extent that you felt unable to care for your children. It sounded like you had insight into your difficulties. I expect the fact that there were court proceedings so quickly, meant that you did not have time for the mental health treatment to work before the end of the proceedings. I can’t imagine how difficult this must have been for you.

However, since that time your life seems to have changed and you have sought support for your mental health which seems stable. You are no longer with the person who seems to have been a factor in children services going to court in the first place. You have to be commended for the changes you have made.

In answer to your questions.

Children services have initially suggested that a safeguarding midwife is allocated to you. You want to know their role and what to expect from them.
Each maternity service will have a designated lead safeguarding midwife whose job is to ensure that safeguarding procedures are in place and followed by midwifes. There will also be midwifes who are particularly experienced in safeguarding processes. If there is potential risk to an unborn child then a safeguarding midwife will be appointed as they know the child protection processes and will be trained to support mothers in these circumstances. They will also have experience of working together with other professionals, of child protection meetings and of when to share information with other professionals.

Given your risk to your children seemed related to your mental health, you could ask the midwife about mental health assessments or support at this time. Pregnancy and giving birth can exacerbate some mental health conditions. So it would be in your best interests to get early help and support now, if it might be needed. For example, if your mental health deteriorated at birth or shortly after, would a place in a mother and baby unit be available if needed?

You should ask the midwife about her role and what it means.

The safeguarding midwife will not determine risk but her opinion (as well as that of other professionals) will feed into a social work assessment and so will be important. She will also know about support is available to reduce any future risk.

You ask what is likely to happen regarding children service involvement.

Children services will carry out a pre-birth assessment which will involve:
• Assessing yours and dad’s parenting capacity and whether anything might impact on your ability to care for your baby. What help could you need?
• The assessment will look at your baby’s needs. If there are extra needs, what support would you need?
• The social worker will look at the environment you live in. Is it suitable for a baby?
• She will assess what family and friend support you and dad have. Is there anyone who can provide practical or emotional help once baby is born?
Have a look at your local authority’s pre-birth safeguarding procedures.
The social worker will need to go through the files and court papers that concern your younger children to see what had happened so she can assess what has changed.
As part of the assessment, she will want to speak to professionals involved with you and dad, such as your GP, mental health worker and midwife to ascertain whether any support is needed and how this can be accessed.

At the end of the assessment a number of different decisions could be made:
• The case is closed and there is no further action or you are referred to early help for support-such as via mental health services.
• There is a pre-birth child in need plan
• A child protection conference is held to see whether there should be a child protection plan.

It is impossible for me to say what the outcome of the assessment could be. Many parents who have had children removed then go on the keep later children because their circumstances have changed.
Children services were involved a long time ago with your older children and your partner was different. You have certainly changed. You have received the treatment for your mental health which sounds stable and your home is tidy. Your partner is stable and he has a child. This sounds positive to me.
Usually, when there has been previous care proceedings, there will be either a pre-birth child in need or child protection plans (see above). These plans provide support to parents and monitoring.

If parents can work well with professionals, then this ensures a baby lives safely with parents and the plans will then eventually be closed.

You will be worried that your baby will be removed from you. This might be considered as part of a pre-birth child protection plan. Children services cannot take court proceedings to remove your baby until it has been born. They would have prove that your baby has suffered or is likely to suffer significant harm due to your parenting. If children services are considering removal, there would normally be a pre- proceedings process. You would be entitled to a legally aided solicitor to support you.

Please see our advice sheet about care proceedings .

You ask about whether you will get a letter from the social worker. I’m not sure. The social worker may phone you and asks to meet with you instead.

You ask what you should do in the meantime.

Ask about family group conferences (FGC’s). Look at the advice sheet about family group conferences .
Do you and dad have support from your community (friends and family)? An FGC could coordinate support from your network so that any risk to your baby is reduced. It could also look for carers for your baby, if things were not to go well and there are care proceedings.

Speak to your midwife about your mental health. Will you have an assessment to see what support you might need? What happens if your mental health is affected by your pregnancy? What support is available? Is there a mother and baby unit place appropriate and available? What other support is there for your mental health?

You lost your children to adoption. Have you had any support to help you deal with this loss? If you feel you still need support, you could ask about adoption support such as counselling.

Ask to see any written assessments. If there are any errors, you could point the factual errors out and ask that they are corrected.
Was domestic violence ever an issue? If so, speak to your local dv services about any support you might need.

You should look at the court papers from the care proceedings. (For example the guardian’s final report, social workers report and any expert report such as a psychological report). Check that you have addressed every issue that was raised and have had the support to change.

In case things go to the pre proceedings process or care, you should research solicitors. Get legal advice. Look for a solicitor who is experienced in care proceedings and may be on the children panel.

I have provided an outline, if you have any questions please post again or call our confidential advice line on 0808 801 0366.

Best wishes,
Suzie