News Essentials: 27th November 2021

A brief summary of the essential family law news and cases from the last week: 

NEWS

New figures show nearly 50,000 calls to domestic abuse helpline – a 22% rise during pandemic
Calls to the national domestic abuse helpline rose by more than a fifth during the coronavirus pandemic, figures show. Full story: Care Appointments.

Message from Mr Justice Mostyn: amendments to standard orders
Order No. 10.1 (Non-molestation order) is amended to include in para 1 the respondent’s date of birth, the omission of which has caused occasional identification problems and unnecessary automated alerts from the Police National Database. Full story: Courts and Tribunals Judiciary.

Acting for both sides “may become the norm” in divorce work
A future where lawyers act for both sides of divorces as a matter of course and others exit regulation to offer a new kind of service has been sketched out by Resolution. Full story: Legal Futures.

Judge lifts reporting restrictions in order to find girls who vanished while in family court proceedings
Two girls who went missing from their home in London while at the centre of family court proceedings could be with their mother in France or Madagascar, social services bosses say. Full story: Care Appointments.

NAGALRO issues tool to assess suitability of family and friends to supervise contact
The Professional Association for Children's Guardians, Family Court Advisers and Independent Social Workers (NAGALRO) has issued a supervision of contact tool for assessing wider family and friends to support contact. Full story: Family Law.

Children adopted from care falls to lowest in 21 years, government figures show
Latest figures show continued sharp decline in care leavers, children entering care and looked-after asylum-seeking children. Full story: Community Care.

Better adult outcomes for children cared for by relatives – new research
New research from University College London's Institute of Epidemiology & Health Care shows that of adults who spent some or all of their childhood in care, those who were cared for by relatives as children had better socio-economic outcomes than their peers who did not. Full story: Family Law Week.

Cuts led to vulnerable children ‘crisis’: House of Lords Public Services Committee
More than a million vulnerable children in England have had their life chances reduced by cuts to early years and youth support since 2010. Full story: Family Law Week.

Children in care in England could hit almost 100,000 by 2025
The number of children in care in England could reach almost 100,000 by 2025, according to new analysis. Full story: BBC News.

Domestic and sexual abuse of silenced Sikh women revealed
First ever report shows 70% of respondents have suffered at the hands of a partner or members of their extended family. Full story: The Observer.

CASES

YP (Adoption of 18 Year Old) [2021] EWHC 3168 (Fam) (26 November 2021)
Adoption application, issued day before child's 18th birthday, by partner or close friend of child's birth mother. Adoption order made. Full report: Bailii.

Al Saleh v Nakeeb [2021] EWHC 3186 (Fam) (26 November 2021)
Appeal by husband from decision that talaq divorce was invalid and that therefore the parties remained married at the date of the wife's divorce petition. Full report: Bailii. See also my note, here.

CO (a Child: care proceedings) [2021] EWHC 3185 (Fam) (15 November 2021)
Care proceedings brought because of child's extreme behaviour and the parents' inability to cope with it in the circumstances in which they were living. Full report: Bailii.

M, (Fact Finding, False Allegations, Section 91(14)) [2021] EWHC 3077 (Fam) (12 November 2021)
Fact-finding in private law proceedings, concerning serious allegations of abuse against father. Allegations not established. Full report: Bailii.

Somerset County Council v NHS Somerset Clinical Commissioning Group & Anor [2021] EWHC 3004 (Fam) (10 November 2021)
Application by Somerset County Council for declaratory relief relating to lawfulness of placement orders made between 2017 and 2021 in respect of a group of ten children. Full report: Bailii.

EH v TH [2021] EWFC B68 (13 July 2021)
Fact-finding hearing in domestic abuse/contact proceedings, the mother seeking findings of abuse against her and grooming of children by the father. Full report: Bailii.

A (A CHILD) (supervised contact) (s91(14) Children Act 1989 orders) [2021] EWCA Civ 1749 (23 November 2021)
Appeal by mother from order for supervised contact and s.91(14) barring order. Appeal dismissed. Full report: Bailii. See also my short note, here.

F v M [2021] EWHC 3133 (Fam) (23 November 2021)
Application by father in child arrangements proceedings for determination that nothing should be disclosed to the police in respect of any written statements made by him in which he makes any admissions in respect of the court's findings of abuse by him. Full report: Bailii. See also my brief note, here.

MQB v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and SRB (CSM) [2021] UKUT 263 (AAC) (19 October 2021)
Child support - Variation: other - Non - resident parent with unearned income - Child Support Maintenance Calculations Regulations 2012, reg.69 - Interpretation of reg.69(6). Child support - Variation: diversion of income - Child Support Maintenance Calculations Regulations 2012, reg.71 - Circumstances in which omitting to draw income from a company raises the issue of diversion. Full report: Bailii.