Ss not working with me

[Tryingmum21]

Hi my child has been in care for a year since January 2022 I've been struggling with social services due to them not engaging with me and saying I'm not engaging with them when I've been trying with backed up evidence with my advocate for a few months we have been asking for a lac review which they said in the new year. A new social worker has just been alicated and recently told me and other organisations involved that the lac review was done in November without me or organisations such as advocate knowing with them saying I've refused to go. I've been waiting for months for an appropriate adult to supervise community visits and checks to be done but still nothing has been sorted. In the court it was said I needed cbt therapy and to give up smoking cannibis but reading the orders recently there is no mention of this although I've had cbt and given up cannibis asking to be drug test to prove this nothing seems to happen I also don't drink and have full support from all organisations I'm working with I'm just wondering what can I do now to keep moving forward as I'm still only seeing my child for an hour and a half a month with no phone calls in a contact centre do you think I would be able to bring this back to court to revoke the court order without social services support

[KatKat10]

Do you have evidence of your communications with SS? Put everything in writing, keep all communications. It does sound that you are quite vulnerable, as you mention having an advocate and appropriate adult.
Did you ever receive an invite to the LAC review? if not challenge this.
Did you receive the minutes from the LAC review, if not request these. Start challenging everything. Get your self a solicitor as well who has accreditations in child law. That way they will not take advantage of you.

Read through the posts of other users and the posts and replies from Suzie for helpful advice.

[Tryingmum21]

Thanks for replying no I'm not vulnerable she has been there through the whole process I'm not on any medications anymore been signed of drug and alcohol programme currently doing an aces course with another advocate that helps to communicate with ss...I've got evidence from the passed year of communications with ss every message I sent to them I sent to my solicitor and advocate so I always had evidence. As my engagement with authorities was used as a reason to take my child though I had reports from all organisations I was working with back then too. With full engagement. I've just managed to set a meeting up with solicitor for this Thursday and been offered a complaints form from new sw about how things have gone when I met him last. On this lac review that was ment to have happened there I no times or who was present or any of the info that was ment to be on there just that it had taken place and I had refused to go. My advocate has looked into it, in the first and last meeting with new sw he said he was going to find the evidence of this by last week and get back to me my advocate has sent him 3 emails to him this week to try and get me some answers aswell as me since two weeks ago with no reply.

[Tryingmum21]

The appropriate adult is to supervise community visits that should of happened months ago but they've chosen not to run checks on the people I've chosen and one point saying I had to apply for the checks just to delay this further. In the court order it stated I had to give a month's notice of where and what I had planned to take my child but I can't do that untill checks had been sorted either way.

[Suzie, FRG Adviser]

Dear Tryingmum21

Welcome to the parents’ discussion board and thank you for your posts. My name is Suzie and I am Family Rights Group’s adviser. I am sorry to hear that your child has been in foster care for a year. I am guessing that this is under a full care order as you don’t mention any current court proceedings.

You have described how you have made a lot of progress in the last year and that you are working well with a range of professionals although children’s services dispute this. It is good to hear that you have an advocate to support you and that you have made an appointment with a solicitor also.

Your concerns are:

A Looked After Child review took place without your knowledge. You were also recorded as refusing to go which you explain is not the case. You have not yet had the details or minutes of this meeting.

• Your contact is still at an hour and a half in a contact centre.
• You have put forward some family members/friends to be assessed to supervise you in the community with your children but children’s services have not actioned this and have not done checks on the people you suggested.
• As a result your contact moved forward.
• You want to know how you can apply to court to end the care order if children’s services do not support you.

You have probably already met with your solicitor so may have made a plan of action. If not, you might want to consider:

• Formally setting out in writing, with the help of your advocate, to your social worker , their manager, the Independent Reviewing Officer , your areas of concern and asking that they address your concerns in writing with clarification about how they are going to move forward.

• You can do an access to records request to clarify what happened in relation to the Looked After Child review.

• If you don’t receive a response or the response is inadequate you could then proceed, with the help of your advocate, to make a formal ]complaint,

• You can go back to court without the support of children’s services but it may be advisable to have started your community contact so that you can show that this is going well.

• You may have already sought advice from your solicitor about what is involved. This information about applying to end a care order also may be helpful to you.

I hope this is useful; please post again or call or freephone advice line on 0808 8010366, lines are open Mon to Fri, 9.30 am to 3,00 pm, to discuss your situation with an adviser.

Best wishes

Suzie