We do not offer legal aid. All of the advice we offer is on a private paying basis. However, you may be entitled to legal aid. You can check online here. We can help you obtain this financial assistance however you would be responsible for our costs until funding was in place.
Have you or a family member been contacted by social services regarding the care of your child/children? If yes, it is important that you seek legal advice straight away, even if you are working with social services amicably.
The local authority has a duty to intervene and start child Care Proceedings if there are concerns that a child is at risk. In a lot of these cases, social services are involved for just a short period of time, however, for some, they may call for a Child Protection Case Conference. This allows social services to assess whether a Care Order needs to be made or not.
If social services decide to start child Care Proceedings the Court will try to make a decision within 26 weeks of the application being made (about six months).