Category: children

South Yorkshire police under fire for failing to protect vulnerable children – BBC News

Posted September 30th, 2014 in children, news, police, reports, sexual grooming, victims by tracey

‘A police force criticised for turning a blind eye to the sexual exploitation of 1,400 children in Rotherham has been further rebuked for “weaknesses” in its child protection procedures. South Yorkshire police had “limited understanding” of the risk posed by offenders who target vulnerable children, while officers showed an inconsistent response to child sexual exploitation, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) said.’

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BBC News, 30th September 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

The Children Act – Ian McEwan: a review – Family Law Week

Posted September 26th, 2014 in children, family courts, judges, news by tracey

‘Sarah E Green, solicitor at TLT, reviews Ian McEwan’s latest novel which concerns a High Court judge in the Family Division.’

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Family Law week, 25th September 2014

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

Toddler’s virus death ‘not predictable,’ consultant says – BBC News

Posted September 26th, 2014 in children, inquests, medical treatment, news by tracey

‘The death of a toddler who died from a respiratory virus after seeing GPs 30 times could not have been prevented or predicted, his inquest heard.’

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BBC News, 25th September 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Father ‘bit baby daughter on forehead before beating and shaking her to death’ – Daily Telegraph

Posted September 26th, 2014 in child abuse, children, murder, news, sentencing by tracey

‘A “callous and brutal” father who murdered his baby daughter by repeatedly biting, punching and shaking her has been jailed for life with a minimum of 22 years.’

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Daily Telegraph, 25th September 2014

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Prisoners’ children ‘forgotten victims’, Barnardo’s says – BBC News

Posted September 26th, 2014 in children, families, news, prisons by tracey

‘Children of prisoners are the “forgotten victims” of the justice system, Barnardo’s has said. Figures from 120 prisons suggest children make 500,000 visits to parents in prisons in England and Wales and the charity says these visits can cause them “long-lasting distress”. It says the children are in a “policy black hole”, with little government effort to monitor or identify them.’

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BBC News, 26th September 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Children being denied justice by legal cuts, says children’s commissioner – The Guardian

Posted September 24th, 2014 in budgets, children, HM Courts Service, housing, legal aid, news, young persons by sally

‘Vulnerable teenagers are being deprived of justice because cuts to legal aid are preventing them from getting representation, a report by the children’s commissioner said on Wednesday.”

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The Guardian, 24th September 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Changes to Practice Direction 21 – Material to be Served and Filed in Relation to Child/Protected Party Settlement Claims – Zenith PI Blog

Posted September 23rd, 2014 in children, civil procedure rules, news, practice directions, service by sally

‘With the 75th Update to the Civil Procedure Rules (coming into force 1 October 2014), amendments to Practice Direction 21 (Children and Protected Parties) address the inconsistencies between the rules and practice direction in respect of the material that must be served and filed in relation to child/protected party settlement claims.’

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Zenith PI Blog, 23rd September 2014

Source: www.zenithpi.wordpress.com

Children: Private Law Update – Family Law Week

Posted September 22nd, 2014 in appeals, children, contact orders, EC law, evidence, expert witnesses, families, human rights, interpreters, jurisdiction, legal aid, legal representation, news, private hearings, sexual offences by sally

‘Alex Verdan QC of 4 Paper Buildings considers recent judgments in private law children cases, including the President’s judgment on legal aid funding in Q v Q.’

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Family Law Week, 19th September 2014

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

Gloucester cellar sex attack ‘not preventable’ – BBC News

Posted September 19th, 2014 in assault, children, local government, news, sexual offences, social services, young offenders by tracey

‘A sex attack by two teenagers on a boy in a cellar in Gloucester could not have been anticipated or prevented, a report has found.’

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BBC News, 18th September 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Care Proceedings and the European Dimension: Article 15 Transfers – Family Law Week

Posted September 17th, 2014 in care orders, children, delay, EC law, evidence, families, foreign jurisdictions, human rights, news, social services by tracey

‘Michael Jones, barrister of 15 Winckley Square, considers recent developments in respect of care proceedings involving another European state.’

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Family Law Week, 16th September 2014

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

Babysitter Jay Miller jailed for toddler attack – BBC News

Posted September 12th, 2014 in children, expert witnesses, grievous bodily harm, news, sentencing by tracey

‘A babysitter who broke a two-year-old toddler’s arm and carried out other assaults has been jailed for 30 months.’

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BBC News, 12th September 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Leicester illegal circumcision doctor guilty of misconduct – BBC News

Posted September 12th, 2014 in children, disciplinary procedures, doctors, health, news, professional conduct, quality assurance, standards by tracey

‘A psychiatrist who circumcised 41 boys at a “non-sterile” clinic in a terraced house has been found guilty of misconduct. Dr Hassan Abdulla was not registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) when he operated at the Al-Khalill Clinic in Leicester.’

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BBC News, 11th September 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Juvenile Offenders: A Different Approach Needed? – Part III – No. 5 Chambers

Posted September 10th, 2014 in children, criminal justice, internet, news, prisons, sentencing, young offenders, young persons by sally

‘In this series written for Criminal Law & Justice Weekly, Navpreet Virk and No5 member Richard Gibbs present the opposing arguments surrounding the manner in which the youth courts treat juveniles convicted of criminal offences and examine the countervailing arguments and policies. In the third of this four–part series, Richard Gibbs writes that the criminal justice system is predicated on finding the fairest way of dealing with juveniles.’

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No. 5 Chambers, 3rd September 2014

Source: www.no5.com

Child witness court video evidence expansion planned – BBC News

Posted September 10th, 2014 in children, Crown Court, evidence, news, sexual offences, trials, victims, video recordings, witnesses by sally

‘Changes to allow children and abuse victims in England and Wales to film their evidence before a trial begins should be brought in “as fast as possible”, a justice minister has said.’

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BBC News, 9th September 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

‘Monstrous child sexual predator’ John Laister jailed – BBC News

Posted September 10th, 2014 in abuse of position of trust, care homes, child abuse, children, news, rape, sentencing, sexual offences, victims by sally

‘An ex-Sunday school teacher who raped and sexually abused young girls under his care has been jailed for 14 years.’

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BBC News, 9th September 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Legal aid: children and the residence test – government response to the JCHR – Ministry of Justice

Posted September 5th, 2014 in children, domestic violence, human rights, legal aid, reports by tracey

‘Government response to the Joint Committee on Human Rights’ (JCHR) first report of the 2014 to 2015 session.’

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Ministry of Justice, 4th September 2014

Source: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice

Juvenile Offenders: A Different Approach Needed? – Part I – No. 5 Chambers

Posted September 3rd, 2014 in bereavement, children, crime, crime prevention, criminal justice, custody, education, media, news, poverty, prisons, psychiatric damage, sentencing, young offenders, young persons by sally

‘In this series written for Criminal Law & Justice Weekly, Navpreet Virk and No5 member Richard Gibbs present the opposing arguments surrounding the manner in which the youth courts treat juveniles convicted of criminal offences and examine the countervailing arguments and policies. In the first of this four part series, Nav Virk sets out the general philosophical underpinnings of the current policy approach.’

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No. 5 Chambers, 21st August 2014

Source: www.no5.com

Legal aid cut for family courts ‘damaging’ for children – BBC News

Posted September 2nd, 2014 in children, delay, family courts, legal aid, litigants in person, news by sally

‘Children are being damaged by the rising number of estranged couples representing themselves in family court battles, a former judge has claimed.’

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BBC News, 2nd September 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

State should pay for representation and witnesses in private child disputes – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted September 1st, 2014 in children, contact orders, costs, expert witnesses, legal aid, legal representation, news, parental responsibility, sexual offences by sally

‘Public funding is not generally available for litigants in private-law children cases, and no expert can now be instructed in such a case unless the court is satisfied, in accordance with section 13(6) of the Children and Families Act 2014, that the expert is “necessary” to assist the court to resolve the proceedings “justly”.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 31st August 2014

Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com

Legal Update: disclosure, formats and context – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted September 1st, 2014 in appeals, children, disclosure, fire, freedom of information, internet, local government, news, privacy, tribunals by sally

‘Disclosure of information about children, pursuant to a request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FoI), is always a difficult issue and the natural reaction of public authorities is to err on the side of caution.’

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Law Society’s Gazette, 1st September 2014

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk